244 C O R 
fumigated with fulphur to deftroy the worms, which had 
entirely defaced or greatly changed the natural colours. 
48. Corvus cirrhatus, the black-crefted jay of China. 
This beautiful bird, called by Vaillant pie bleue a lete noire, 
has lately been brought from China. It is nearly the 
fize of the preceding fpecies, which it refembles alfo in 
the richnefs of its colours ; but the tail is not fo long, 
nor fo ftrongly indented. The forehead, top of the head, 
cheeks, and throat, are black; the feathers on the head 
are long, and form a black tuft, which the bird has the 
power of railing at will. The hind part of the neck, the 
mantle, fcapulari'es, and wings, are of a delicate blue, 
darker on the fmall coverts at the origin of the wings, 
and on the outer webs of the large quills. The quills of 
the tail are pointed ; they are ultramarine colour in ge¬ 
neral, but white at the ends. The front of the neck, the 
under wing-coverts, and all the plumage of the under 
parts as far as the tail, are of a greyilh white ; the bill 
and nails black; the feet biown. 
49'. Corvus cfiftatus, the blue-crefted jay : a fize 
fmaller than the common jay; bill black; the head is 
decorated with a creft of blue feathers ; round the bafe 
of the bill black ; a (Ireak of the fame pafles on each 
lide through the eyes, below the crefi, and behind it; 
and, uniting, forms a crefcent on the bread ; the tides of 
the head and throat are bluifii white, and there is a fpot 
of the fame over the eye ; hind part of the neck, back, 
wings, and tail, blue ; alt the feathers of the tail, except 
the two middle ones, tipped with white, and the feathers 
of the wings and tail elegantly barred with black ; the 
greater coverts and fecond quills tipped with white ; 
the bread is bloflom-colour; the belly and under tail- 
coverts white ; legs dufkv brown. Inhabits North Ame¬ 
rica, but not feen farther northward than Albany : is 
very common at New York and in New England, in April 
or May. It builds in fiwamps, and has a foft delicate 
note. Its food is hazel-nuts, chefnuts, beech-mail, &c. 
It is alto fond of maize ; and, being a gregarious bird, 
often unites into flocks of twenty thoufand at leaft, which 
alighting on a field of that corn, foon lays walle the 
whole : hence it is reckoned the mod: deftrubtive bird in 
America. 
50. Corvus Cayanus, the Cayenne jay : fize of the 
common jay ; bill grey ; forehead, cheeks, throat, and 
lower part of the neck, black ; on each fide of the head 
are three white fpots, the firft above the eye, the next 
beneath it, and the third at the bafe of the lower man¬ 
dible ; the back and wings are violet, with a tinge of 
ath-colour ; the tail rounded, of a violet-colour, with 
brown edges and white tips, except the two middle ones, 
which are violet-brown ; legs grey. Native of Cayenne. 
51. Corvus Sinenfis, the Chinefe jay : bill bluilh lead- 
colour ; crown of the head brown ; over each eye a line 
of white ; through the eye, and behind it, a llreak of 
black ; on the ears a fpot of bluifii and white, encircled 
with black, which colour defcends downwards on each 
fide, forming a crefcent on the throat, within which it is 
white ; the upper part of the neck and body are of a ru¬ 
fous bloflom-colour ; fecond quills and tail brown ; near 
the end is a band of black, each tail-feather tipped 
with a white roundilh fpot; legs lead-colour. Native of 
China. 
52. Corvus Sibiricus, the Siberian jay: a fmall fpe¬ 
cies ; bill dufkv; forehead, (ides of the head, chin, and 
fore part of the neck, light cinereous, with a tinge of 
blue on the fides of the head, and a fliade of buff on the 
bread: the top of the head brownifli black, and fome- 
what crefled ; body above, and wings, cinereous, verg¬ 
ing to brown on the back ; the brea-ft, under parts, and 
rump, ferruginous orange; quills cinereous; two mid¬ 
dle tail-feathers the fame ; the other orange ; legs cine¬ 
reous. Native of Siberia. 
53. Corvus Peruvianus, the Peruvian jay : bill dufky; 
she bale furrounded with fine blue, palling a little behind 
V U 'S. 
the eye, and belotv it on each fide ; the upper part of the 
body is light green, from the middle of the back to the 
end of the tail, fix of the middle feathers of which are of 
that colour; but changes by degrees to bluilh, and finifhes 
at the top of the head, which lias a kind of white crown ; 
the bread, belly, and three outer tail-feathers, are jon¬ 
quil yellow ; on the throat, and fore-part of the neck, is 
a patch of feathers, imitating black velvet. 
54. Corvus flavus, the yellow jay : length nine inches; 
bill dufky black ; upper parts greenilh b own; on the 
middle of the crown is a golden yellow band ; over each 
eye a line of white ; chin white ; the reft of the under 
parts fine yellow ; wings, and tail reddilh brown, with 
paler margins ; legs {lender, and of a lead-colour. Na¬ 
tive of Cayenne. 
55. Corvus caryocataclus, the nutcracking jay. This 
bird is diftinguilhed from the other jays by the fliape of 
its bill, which is ftraighter, blunter, and compofed of two 
unequal pieces. Its inftincl leads it to prefer the reii- 
dence of high mountains. It is clofely related to this 
fpecies; and fome authors have ranged it with the jays, 
others with the magpies, and fome with the daws; 
it is alfo aflerted that it chatters more than any other of 
this extenfive genus. It is nearly as large as the mag¬ 
pie ; bill black; irides hazel; the feathers which fall 
over the noftrils bordered with brown; upper part of 
the head, and nape of the neck, black; general colour 
of the plumage rufty brown, marked with beautiful tri¬ 
angular white fpots; vent white: quills and tail black ; 
the laft tipped with white; legs black. Thefe birds 
are fcattered over many parts of Europe, but no where 
fo plenty as in Germany ; they are found alfo in Sweden 
and Denmark, where they frequent the mountains ; they 
fometimes appear in vaft flocks in France, but vifit Eng¬ 
land very feldom ; Mr. Pennant mentions one as having 
been (hot in Flintfliire, and another in Kent. They are 
alfo found in North America, but not near the fea-coafts. 
One was brought from Kamtfchatka by our late voy¬ 
agers.- In manners it mod refembles the jay, laying up 
a ftore of acorns and nuts. In fome parts it keeps chiefly 
in the pine forefts, on the kernels of which it feeds ; and 
is faid frequently to pierce the trees like the woodpecker, 
for which the bill feems not unapt ; and makes its neft 
in the holes of trees. Klein mentions two varieties, 
one fmaller than the other; the largeft, he fays, breaks 
the nuts to pieces, and the other pierces them. Both 
feed at times on wild berries and inlecls. 
56. Corvus pica, the magpie. This well-known bird 
meafures above eighteen inches in length, and weighs 
eight or nine ounces: the bill is black; irides hazel; 
the fcapulars, and all the under parts from the breuft, 
are white ; the reft of the plumage, wings, and tail, 
black, glofled with green, purple, and blue,.in different 
lights : the eleven firft quills are white in the middle, 
on the inner web, leflening by degrees as they advance 
inwards; the tail is very cuneiform, the two middle 
feathers being near eleven inches in length, and the out- 
moft only five inches and a half: legs black. We can 
form no judgment of the beauties of this bird, from 
thofe dirty mutilated fpecimens, which we fee expofed 
daily in a wicker cage. It is only in a ftate of nature 
that they can be appreciated ; and whoever views them 
in this ftate, will do fo with aftonifiiment; for though 
the colours at a diftant view feem to be mere black and 
white, yet the fplendor that accompanies them in every 
new fituation, from the eye of the beholder, will oblige 
him to own', that there is not a more beautiful bird in 
England. They are found no farther fouth than Italy, 
on the European continent; and to the north, in Sweden 
and Denmark. Forfter met with it at Madeira ; and it 
is alio feen in America, but not common, and is a bird 
of paflage in thofe parts. At Hudfon’s Bay it is called 
by the Indians oue-ta-kee-ajkee, which fignifies heart-bird. 
In maimers it approaches to the crow, feeding almoft on 
every 
