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CYAN0C1TTA FLORID ANA. 
non-conductors of heat and cold as when dry, therefore they perished. These are the dark 
days of Jay life, but usually at this season the time passes pleasantly, for they have their 
stores to draw upon and they may be seen perched upon a branch holding a frozen chest¬ 
nut in their claws, hammering at it briskly with their strong beaks until it is broken to 
pieces when it is swallowed. On fine days they occasionally make excursions into the or¬ 
chards in search of the eggs of insects, such as caterpillars and canker worms. Thus they 
prove of some benefit to the husbandman but they are too great transgressors to be favorites 
as they, not only steal the farmer’s produce, as related, but also rob the nests of other 
birds, even killing the young. 
In spite of their cautious disposition, Jays are stupid about some things; for example, 
I know of but few birds that are easier to capture in snairs than this species. I have never 
found any difficulty in taking them, even in box traps baited with an ear of corn. They 
are not remarkably interesting as pets, as they do not become tame readily, but are not 
especially shy in their native state when not molested and I have seen them very abundant 
in the live oakes which stand in the streets of Jacksonville, Florida, often alighting with¬ 
in a few feet of the heads of the pedestrians. They also become quite familiar on the 
farms in the North, especially in winter, and I know of one that was accustomed to enter 
a shed when the door was left open. He would hop about the floor or bask in the sun, 
but was always ready to dart out whenever any one approached. The Jays of New England 
breed the first week of May, placing the nest in low trees, often choosing a cedar or other 
evergreen. The birds attend very closely to the duties of incubation, and even if the fe¬ 
male be shy at other seasons it is difficult to make her leave her eggs then. When the 
young appear both parents are very assiduous in guarding them. The newly fledged nest¬ 
lings may be found in the woods by the first of July, and the families remain in company 
until the following summer. The Jays are not usually migratory, or at best, only during 
some of the severest seasons, when those from the North occasionally come as far south 
as Massachusetts. 
GENUS III. CYANOCITTA. THE BUSH JAYS. 
Gen. Ch. Bill, stout and conical, shorter than the head which is not crested. Wings, shorter than the tail which is 
graduated. Coracoids, proportionately shorter than those of the preceding genus. Marginal indentations equaling in depth 
the height of the keel. Size, not large. 
The prevailing color above is blue, with an ashy patch on the back, but they are lighter below. The wings are not 
barred. 
CYANOCITTA FLORID ANA. 
Florida Jay. 
Cyanocitta Floridana Bon., List; 1838. 
DESCRIPTION. 
Sp. Ch. Form, rather slender. Size, medium. Bill, rather thick and conical, with the upper mandible slightly curv¬ 
ed. Sternum, as given above. Tongue, broad, thin and horny, bifid, and provided with coarse, terminal cilia which extend 
along the sides. 
