JAY. 9A 9 



freckled over with pale grey and olive-brown : they are, in 

 some specimens, as much as fifteen lines long, by eleven lines 

 diameter ; although some are much smaller ; and the surface 

 in most specimens bears very little polish. 



The entire length of this species is rather above thirteen 

 inches : the beak measures about ten lines from the tip to 

 the forehead, the wing measures seven inches from the carpus 

 to the tip, and the tail extends about two and a half inches 

 beyond the tips of the closed wings. 



The lively and varied colours of this bird render it, in 

 point of plumage, one of the handsomest of our indigenous 

 species ; the feathers are chiefly broad, loose, and soft, and 

 the colours as follows : — the feathers on the forehead and 

 crown of the head are bluish-white, with black shaft streaks 

 and rays, and a black moustache passes downwards from the 

 corner of the lower mandible : the rest of the head, cheeks, 

 back, and scapulars, breast and flanks, are pale reddish cinna- 

 mon, blushed with bluish-grey on the scapulars ; the upper 

 and under coverts of the tail, the thighs and belly are white ; 

 the tail is black. The wings, in which the chief beauty of 

 the bird resides, are distinguished by brilliant feathers crossed 

 by bars of rich blue, black, and white ; these occupy the 

 ridge of the wing, and some of the greater coverts ; the rest 

 of the greater coverts are black ; the lesser coverts of the 

 wings and some of the tertial feathers nearest the body are 

 bright bay. The greater quill feathers of the wing are dusky 

 on the inner web, and pale brownish white on the outer. 

 Some of the secondary quills have a portion of white on the 

 outer web, the rest black. The eyes are pale blue, the beak 

 and legs reddish brown. 



The egg figured 131 is that of the Jay. 



