The Woodhouse Jay 



has had to wage unceasing warfare on the Blue Jays — or rather, the 

 "Corbales, " for he speaks Italian — in order that El Superintendents 

 may have hens' eggs for breakfast. 



No. 9 



Woodhouse's Jay 



A. O. U. No. 480. Aphelocoma woodhousei (Baird). 



Description. — Somewhat similar to A. califomica, but pattern of color less 

 accentuated; gray of back bluer, the underparts darker, the crissum blue; bill longer 

 and narrower. Adult in fresh plumage: Pileum, hind neck, sides of neck, border of 

 jugular white patch, wings, upper tail-coverts, and tail, jay-blue; crissum a little 

 lighter blue (about king's blue); malar region dark blue; lores and post-ocular area 

 blackish; a superciliary line of white streaks; throat and chest white with diffused gray 

 streaks, as in A. califomica; upper back and scapulars mouse-gray; rump mingled blue 

 and bluish gray; remaining underparts light mouse-gray. Bill and feet black; iris 

 brown. Adult in worn plumage shows reduction of blue, especially on head and cervix, 

 with attendant revelation of mouse-gray; gray of back browner, with showing of 

 drab; pattern of underparts nearly effaced, mingled whitish, pale drab, and bluish 

 dusky. Young birds are like adults in worn plumage with further effacement of blue, 

 the blue element almost confined to wings and tail. Length of adult male 279.4-304.8 

 (11.00-12.OO); wing 133 (5.24); tail 143 (5.63); bill 28.5 (1.12); depth at nostril 9.4 (.37); 

 tarsus 41 (1.61). Females smaller. 



Recognition Marks. — "Jay size;" jay-blue and mouse-gray coloration, without 

 crest. Dintinguished with A. califomica as above. 



Nesting. — Much as in A. califomica. Eggs not so highly differentiated. A 

 set in the M. C. O. coll. has a water-green (greenish yellow) ground color with sharp 

 spots of warm sepia. Av. size 27.7 x 20 (1.09 x .79) (Bendire). 



General Range. — "Great Basin and adjacent arid region, breeding in Upper 

 Sonoran and Transition zones from southeastern Oregon, southern Idaho,, and southern 

 Wyoming south to southeastern California (east of Sierra Nevada), Arizona, New 

 Mexico, southeastern Colorado, and western Texas." (A. O. U. Com.). 



Range in California. — "Upper Sonoran zone in the desert mountains of the 

 eastern part of the State, in the Inyo and Mohave regions. At the eastern base of 

 the Sierra Nevada, probably as a transient only." (Swarth). 



Authorities. — Kennerly (Cyanocitta califomica), Rept. Pac. R. R. Surv., vol. iv. , 

 pt. vi., 1856, p. l6;Baird, Rept. Pac. R. R. Surv., vol. ix., 1858, pp. 585-586 (description 

 of woodhousei); Fisher, A. K., North Amer. Fauna, no. 7, 1893, p. 69 (distr.); Bendire, 

 Life Hist. N. Amer. Birds, vol. ii., 1895, pp. 372-374, pi. v., fig. 14 (habits, nest and 

 eggs); Oberholser, Condor, vol. xix., 1917, pp. 94, 95 (taxonomy); Swarth, LTniv. Calif. 

 Pub. Zool., vol. 17, 1918, pp. 417-418 (descr. ; range). 



63 



