^ Figs. 1-6 are from Yarrell’s British Birds (Gurney & Jackson). 
22 Wild Birds, Usefid and Injurious. 
» 
birds. It feeds upon the parasites of sheep, and has been 
credited with the destruction of warble maggots in cattle, 
though I am unable to find any satisfactory reference to this 
point. The large and conspicuous nest is surrounded by thorny 
sticks, and is further protected by a dome of the same material. 
The belief that there are two species of magpie, one building in 
hedges, the other in trees, is without foundation. 
Fig. 1. — Magpie (Pica rusticaX'^ 
The most striking adornment of the Jay is a patch of lovely 
blue feathers on the wing, though the rest of the plumage is of 
almost equal beauty. Jays receive, not unnaturally, much 
attention at the hands of gamekeepers, partly because they 
consume large quantities of pheasant food, and partly because 
