BIRD LIFE IN WASHINGTON 
55 
STELLER JAY 
Here comes Steller Jay, the sauciest 
feathered imp of the woods. We wanted 
everything quiet so that Golden Crowned 
Kinglet would not he frightened away. 
Our Kinglet lesson is lost—while “Ack, 
ack, ack, ack, yank, yank,” yells Blue 
Jay. The more I try to silence him, the 
more he sauces me. What is he doing 
now? It sounds as if he had stolen Grand 
Mother’s coffee mill and was working it 
vigorously, or as if he had a double set 
of teeth to grate. 
He is seldom caught singing. He is not 
amiable enough to let us hear him if he 
can help it. But he can sing. He sings 
to his mate in the spring. His song is a 
musical crow. 
A bully though he is, he can be fright- 
ened, too. I found a pair in the thicket. 
One bird was cautiously stealing about, 
without making any noise. The other 
followed me back and forth uttering gen¬ 
uine cries of fear while I hunted for the 
secret. As Blue Jay is so seldom afraid, 
I concluded there must be a baby bird 
hidden among the branches and that the 
father bird was afraid I might find the 
little darling when the mother bird car- 
ried food to it. 
These birds are splendid jokers. 1 have 
seen a flock of them tease Sharp-shinned 
Hawk for half an hour until the hawk 
