STELLER’S JAY. 
45 
been shot by Steller, when Behring’s crew landed upon the coast of 
America. It was first described by Latham from a specimen in 
Sir Joseph Banks’s collection from Nootka Sound, and on his 
authority has been admitted into all subsequent compilations. 
The species is indeed too well characterized to be doubted, and 
appears moreover to have been known to Temminck, as it is cited 
by him as a true Jay in his “ Analysis of a General System.” 
Nevertheless, adhering strictly to our plan of not admitting into 
the Ornithology of the United States any but such as we had 
personally examined, we did not include this species either in our 
Catalogue, or Synopsis, of the birds of this country; and it is 
but recently that Mr. Leadbeater’s specimen has enabled us to 
add it to our list. 
In elevating our subgenus Garrulus, to the rank of a genus, we 
merely conform to the dictates of nature; in this instance coin¬ 
ciding with Temminck, whose intention it is, as he informs us, to 
include in it the Jays and Magpies, leaving the name of Corvus 
for those species which are distinguished by their black plumage, 
and short and even tails. These birds are on every account well 
worthy of this distinction, and we cheerfully adopt an arrange¬ 
ment which we deem consonant with nature: but we cannot agree 
to the change of termination ( Garrula ) which he has attempted to 
introduce, under the pretence that his genus is more extensive 
than the genus Garrulus of former authors. That genus was in fact 
formed by Brisson, and afterwards by Linne, united with Corvus. 
This latter genus of Linne certainly contained within itself the 
constituents of several very natural genera; but the additions 
made to it by Gmelin and Latham, rendered it an utter chaos, 
where every new species with a stout bill took its place, in defi¬ 
ance of the genuine characters. Under such circumstances the 
task of the Ornithologist who professed to be guided by philoso¬ 
phical principles was, doubtless, not merely to subdivide, but to 
VOL. II.—m 
