18 
FARMERS* BULLETIN 755. 
damaged, and small gardens have suffered losses in peas, strawberries, and peanuts. 
Growers of pecans also have entered complaints against the crow. In many sections 
the bird has been credited with being a most potent disseminator of live-stoclc diseases, 
especially hog cholera. While he may be one of many distributors of these diseases, 
ultimate remedies depend upon close attention to sanitation and quarantine rather 
than the destruction of all possible carriers. As a carrion eater, the crow renders the 
farmer an important service, especially in the South. 
In view of the fact that corn pulling may be largely prevented by the use of deter¬ 
rents, as coal tar upon the seed; that loosely made corn shocks, left standing long after 
the corn should have been properly stored, are a constant attraction for these birds; 
that damage to poultry and their eggs may be largely obviated by the proper housing 
of nesting fowls and the screening of chicks; and that much can be accomplished by 
scarecrows and other frightening devices, it appears that the legislation regarding the 
crow at present in force in the Southern States is satisfactory. Absolute protection is 
not afforded in any of these States. This allows the crow to be held in check when 
doing damage, yet the absence of extensive campaigns of destruction permits it to 
continue unmo¬ 
lested, in large 
measure, its good 
work in the de¬ 
struction of insect 
pests in spring and 
summer. — e. r. k. 
BLUE JAY. 1 
Fig. 9.—Blue jay. Length, about Ilf inches. 
In the Southern 
States the blue jay 
(fig. 9), or “jay¬ 
bird ” as he is more 
familiarly known, 
is a resident the 
year round, and in 
winter his num¬ 
bers are swelled 
B2K9-63 by migrants. 
Stomach exami¬ 
nation shows that he possesses essentially the same food habits as his relatives in the 
North, while such differences as do occur are somewhat in favor of the southern bird. 
Complaints from agriculturists and sportsmen appear to be less frequent and severe 
in this area, while bird lovers have had less to say regarding the jay’s habit of nest 
robbing, though this may be in part due to the fact that the movement to foster small 
insectivorous and game birds has not attracted so much attention here as in some 
sections farther north. 
Examination of 184 stomachs indicates that animal food forms 31.9 per cent and 
vegetable 68.1 per cent of the total. Insects make up 26.5 per cent of the yearly 
sustenance, an increase of about 4.5 per cent over the northern bird; this is the strongest 
point in favor of the southern jay, especially since in this food are many of the most 
destructive pests, foremost among which are caterpillars and grasshoppers, in about 
equal quantity. Common articles in the blue jay’s diet are scarabseid beetles, includ¬ 
ing May beetles, euphorias, and other related species, all of which, in one stage or 
another of their development, are highly destructive to vegetation. In May, when 
the first of these are abundant, they comprise nearly three-tenths of the food. About 
wood lots the jay renders particularly valuable service in his choice of insect food. 
1 Cyanocitta cristala. 
