2 BLUE JAY. 



purple, in which the blue predominates ; a collar of black, 

 proceeding from the hind head, passes with a graceful curve 

 down each side of the neck to the upper part of, the breast, 

 where it forms a crescent ; chin, cheeks, throat,' and belly, 

 white, the three former slightly tinged with blue ; greater 

 wing-coverts, a rich blue ; exterior sides of the primaries, 

 light blue, those of the secondaries, a deep purple, except the 

 three feathers next the body, which are of a splendid light 

 blue ; all these, except the primaries, are beautifully barred 

 with crescents of black, and tipt with white ; the interior sides 

 of the wing-feathers are dusky black ; tail long and cuneiform, 

 composed of twelve feathers of a glossy light blue, marked at 

 half inches with transverse curves of black, each feather being 

 tipt with white, except the two middle ones, which deepen 

 into a dark purple at the extremities. Breast and sides under 

 the wings, a dirty white, faintly stained with purple ; inside of 

 the mouth, the tongue, bill, legs, and claws, black ; iris of the 

 eye, hazel. 



The blue jay is an almost universal inhabitant of the woods, 

 frequenting the thickest settlements as well as the deepest re- 

 cesses of the forest, where his squalling voice often alarms the 

 deer, to the disappointment and mortification of the hunter ; 

 one of whom informed me, that he made it a point, in 

 summer, to kill every jay he could meet with. In the charm- 

 ing season of spring, when every thicket pours forth harmony, 

 the part performed by the jay always catches the ear. He 

 appears to be among his fellow-musicians what the trumpeter 

 is in a band, some of his notes having no distant resemblance 

 to the tones of that instrument. These he has the faculty of 

 changing through a great variety of modulations, according to 

 the particular humour he happens to be in. When disposed 

 for ridicule, there is scarce a bird whose peculiarities of song 

 he cannot tune his notes to. When engaged in the blandish- 

 ments of love, they resemble the soft chatterings of a duck, 

 and, while he nestles among the thick branches of the cedar, 

 are scarce heard at a few paces' distance ; but he no sooner 



