Chapter XVIII: Section IV: Crown rufous; body above, olive-green (9)

HAB. Whole length of the Sierra Nevada, from Fort Crook (where it approaches var. _stelleri_) to Fort Tejon.

In the colors of the body, wings, and tail, this well-marked race resembles _C. macrolopha_ in every respect, except that the greater coverts are not barred with black; there being the same abrupt contrast between the deep blue of the wings and tail, and the light greenish-blue of the body, tail-coverts, and primaries,—seen only in these two forms. The variety is confined to the mountains of California and Western Nevada, extending along the Sierra Nevada about the entire length of the State, there being specimens in the collection from Fort Crook and Fort Tejon, and intermediate localities.

HABITS. The Blue-fronted Jay, so far as it was observed by Mr. Ridgway, was found to be exclusively an inhabitant of the pine woods of the Sierra Nevada, and is, with Clarke’s Nutcracker, one of the most characteristic birds of that region. In its general habits and manners, it greatly resembles the eastern Blue Jay, but is rather more shy, while its notes are very different, and do not possess the variety and flexibility of the _cristata_, but are in comparison harsh and discordant. The usual note is a hoarse, deep-toned monosyllabic squawk. Sometimes it utters a hollow sonorous chatter.

Near Carson City one of these birds had been winged by a shot, and, in falling, alighted on the lower branches of a pine-tree. Upon an attempt to capture it, the bird began to ascend the tree limb by limb, at the same time uttering a perfect imitation of the cry of the Red-tailed Hawk, evidently in the hope of frightening away his tormentors. Dr. Newberry regards this Jay as the western counterpart of the _C. cristata_. By its more conspicuous crest, its bold, defiant air, and its excessively harsh and disagreeable cry, it challenges and secures attention. He found it almost exclusively confined to the hilly and mountainous districts, choosing in preference those covered with pines.

Dr. Heermann found these Jays abundant and resident as far south as Warner’s Ranch, where, though common, they were for some reason so unusually wild and vigilant as not to be easily procurable. In feeding, he observed that they seemed always to begin in the lower branches and ascend, hopping from twig to twig, to the topmost point, and, while thus employed, utter a harsh screaming note that can be heard to a considerable distance.

This species, Dr. Cooper states, is numerous in the mountains of California, inhabiting the whole length of the Sierra Nevada, and the Coast Range as far south, at least, as Santa Cruz. Though showing a decided preference for the pine forests, they sometimes in winter frequent those of oaks. They are omnivorous, eating seeds, acorns, nuts, insects, and in winter even potatoes and dead fish. They are at times bold and prying, and at others very cautious and suspicious. They soon learn to appreciate a gun, and show great sagacity in their movements to avoid its peril. On the Columbia they lay in May, and in California about a month earlier.

Cyanura stelleri, var. macrolopha, BAIRD.

LONG-CRESTED JAY.

_Cyanocitta macrolopha_, BAIRD, Pr. A. N. Sc. Phila. VII, June,
1854, 118 (Albuquerque). _? Garrulus stelleri_, SWAINSON, F.
Bor.-Am. II, 1831, 294, pl. liv (head-waters of Columbia;
figure of a bird intermediate between _C. stelleri_ and
_macrolopha_). _Cyanura macrolopha_, BAIRD, Birds N. Am. 1858,
582.—ELLIOT, Illust. Am. B, I, xvii.—COOPER, Orn. Cal. 1,
1870, 300.

SP. CHAR. Crest nearly twice the length of the bill. Tail moderately graduated; the lateral feathers about .60 of an inch shorter than the middle. Fourth and fifth quills longest; second shorter than the secondaries. Head all round, throat, and forepart of the breast, black, the crest with a gloss of blue; rest of back dark ashy-brown with a gloss of greenish. Under parts, rump, tail-coverts, and outer surfaces of primaries, greenish-blue; greater coverts, secondaries, and tertials, and upper surface of tail-feathers bright blue, banded with black; forehead streaked with opaque white, passing behind into pale blue; a white patch over the eye. Chin grayish. Length, 12.50; wing, 5.85; tail, 5.85; tarsus, 1.70 (8,351).

HAB. Central line of Rocky Mountains from northern border of the United States to table-lands of Mexico; Fort Whipple, Arizona.

Young birds have the bright blue of body and black of head replaced by a dull slate; the head unvaried.

An apparent link between this variety and _C. stelleri_ is represented in the Smithsonian collection by three specimens from the region towards the head-waters of the Columbia, where the respective areas of distribution of the two overlap. In this the anterior parts of the body are nearly as black as in _stelleri_ (much darker than _macrolopha_), with the short crest; but the forehead (except in one specimen) is streaked with blue, and there is a white patch over the eye. As in _stelleri_, there are no black bars on the greater wing-coverts. As this is an abundant form, whether permanent race or hybrid, it may be called var. _annectens_.

HABITS. The Long-crested Jay appears to occur throughout the central range of the Rocky Mountains from British Columbia to Mexico, where it is replaced by a closely allied species or race, the _Cyanura coronata_ of Swainson.

Mr. Ridgway met with this Jay only among the Wahsatch and the Uintah Mountains. They appeared to be rather common in those regions, though far from being abundant. In their manners and in their notes they are described as having been almost an exact counterpart of the Sierra Nevada form. Their notes, however, are said to be not so loud nor so coarse as those of the more western species. A nest, found by Mr. Ridgway, June 25, 1869, in Parley’s Park, Wahsatch Mountains, was in a small fir-tree on the edge of a wood. It was saddled on a horizontal branch about fifteen feet from the ground, and contained six eggs. The base of the nest was composed of coarse strong sticks, rudely put together. Upon this was constructed a solid, firm plastering of mud of a uniform concave shape, lined with fine wiry roots. The external diameter is about nine inches, and the height of the nest four. The interior is five inches in diameter, and three in depth.

The species was first described by Professor Baird, from specimens obtained by Dr. Kennerly, who writes that he first saw this bird among the lofty pines of the Sierra Madre in November, 1853. Leaving that range, he did not meet with it again until his party crossed the Aztec Mountains, in January, 1854, where it was less abundant than when first met with. It was, for the most part, found among the cedars on the high grounds, though occasionally seen among the clumps of large pines that were scattered along the valley. The party did not meet with it again.

Dr. Coues found this species a common and a resident bird in Arizona. It was observed to be almost exclusively an inhabitant of pine woods, and was generally to be met with only in small companies, never congregating in the manner of Woodhouse’s Jay. He describes it as very shy, vigilant, noisy, and tyrannical.

The eggs of _C. macrolopha_ measure 1.30 inches in length and .91 in breadth. Their ground-color is a light sea-green. They are somewhat sparingly spotted with fine markings of dark olive-brown, and lighter cloudings of a purplish or violet brown. They are oblong oval in shape, obtuse at either end, but more tapering at one end. They appear to be a little larger than the eggs of _stelleri_, and the ground-color is brighter, and the markings deeper and more of an olive hue.

GENUS CYANOCITTA, STRICKLAND.

_Cyanocitta_, STRICKLAND, Annals and Mag. N. H. XV, 1845, 260.
(Type, _Garrulus californicus_, VIGORS.)
_Aphelocoma_, CABANIS, Mus. Hein. 1851, 221. (Same type.)

CHAR. Head without crest. Wings and tail blue, without any bands. Back usually with a gray patch, different from the head. Bill about as broad as high at the base, and the culmen a little shorter than the head. Nostrils large, nearly circular, and concealed. Tail nearly equal to the wings, lengthened, graduated, or else shorter and nearly even.

This genus is readily distinguished from the preceding by the entire absence of crest and of black bars on the blue of wings and tail. The species and races hitherto described will be found detailed in the accompanying synopsis. The characters indicated above are of no very great generic value, but as the group is a very natural one it will be as well to retain it. As in _Cyanura_, the species are peculiar to the United States and Mexico, one indeed being apparently confined to the Peninsula of Florida.

[Line drawing: _Cyanocitta californica._
8455]

It would perhaps be not very far out of the way to consider Sections A and B as representing in their general characters, respectively, the types from which their subdivisions have sprung.

A. Tail longer than wings. A superciliary stripe of
whitish streaks; jugular and pectoral feathers faintly
edged with bluish, posteriorly forming an indistinct
collar, interrupted medially. Ear-coverts dusky, except in
var. _woodhousei_.

_a._ Forehead and nasal tufts hoary white; the
superciliary stripe a continuous wash of the same.
Scapulars blue like the wings; dorsal region (the
interscapulars) as light-colored as the lower parts.

C. floridana. Back and lower parts pale ashy-brown;
lower tail-coverts bright blue. Wing, 4.50; tail,
5.70; bill, 1.20 and .35; tarsus, 1.40; middle toe,
.85. Wing-formula, 4, 5, 6, 7, 3, 8, 9, 2, 10; first,
1.80 shorter than longest. Graduation of tail, 1.50.
_Hab._ Florida (only).

_b._ Forehead and nasal tufts bright blue; superciliary
stripe composed of narrow streaks; scapulars ashy like
the back; back much darker than the lower parts.

C. californica.

Lower tail-coverts bright blue, dorsal region not
well-defined ashy; auriculars bluish, beneath
continuous pure ash. Superciliary streak well
defined. Wing, 5.15; tail, 6.00; bill, 1.35 and .30;
tarsus, 1.40; middle toe, .85. Wing-formula, fourth,
fifth, and sixth equal; 7, 3, 8, 9 = 2; first, 1.80
shorter than longest. Graduation of tail, .90.
_Hab._ Rocky Mountains and Middle Province of United
States var. _woodhousei_.

Lower tail-coverts pure white; dorsal region
well-defined ashy; auriculars blackish; beneath dull
white, approaching ash on breast. Superciliary
streak indistinct. Wing, 5.65; tail, 6.00; bill,
1.20 and .35; tarsus, 1.42; middle toe, .90.
Wing-formula, 5, 6, 7, 4, 8, 3, 9, 10 = 2; first,
2.20 shorter than longest. Graduation of tail, .80.
_Hab._ Mexico (Orizaba; City of Mexico) var. _sumichrasti_.[58]

Superciliary streak sharply defined, conspicuous.
Wing, 5.00; tail, 5.60; bill, 1.20 and .37; tarsus,
1.55; middle toe, .95. Wing-formula, 4, 5, 6, 7, 3,
8, 9, 2, 10; first, 2.10 shorter than longest.
Graduation of tail, 1.15. _Hab._ Pacific Province of
United States; Cape St. Lucas var. _californica_.

B. Tail not longer than wings, or considerably shorter. No
superciliary stripe, and no streaks on throat or jugulum.
Auriculars blue like the crown.

C. ultramarina. Lower parts whitish, conspicuously
different from the upper.

_Tail nearly, or perfectly even._

Length, 13.00; tail even; bill, 1.50; tail, 7.00.
_Hab._ Mexico var. _ultramarina_.[59]

Length, 11.50; tail very slightly rounded (graduation,
.25 only); bill, 1.28 and .35; tail, 50. Above bright
blue, dorsal region obscured slightly with ashy;
beneath dull pale ash, becoming gradually whitish
posteriorly, the crissum being pure ash. Lores blue.
Tarsus, 1.45; middle toe, .95. Wing-formula, 5, 4 = 6,
7, 3, 8, 9, 10, 2; first, 2.10 shorter than longest.
Graduation of tail, .25. _Hab._ Lower Rio Grande var. _couchi_.

_Tail considerably rounded._

Colors as in _couchi_, but dorsal region scarcely
obscured by ashy. Lores black. Wing, 7.50; tail, 7.50;
bill, 1.30 and .40; tarsus, 1.60; middle toe, .90.
Wing-formula, 5, 4, 6, 3 = 7, 8, 9, 2; first, 2.75,
shorter than longest. Graduation of tail, 1.15. _Hab._
Mexico (Orizaba, Mirador, etc.) var. _sordida_.[60]

Graduation of the colors as in _sordida_, but the
blue, instead of being a bright ultramarine, is very
much paler and duller, and with a greenish cast, the
whole dorsal region decidedly ashy; ash of the
pectoral region much paler, and throat similar,
instead of decidedly whitish, in contrast; pure white
of posterior lower parts covering whole abdomen
instead of being confined to crissum. Wing, 6.20;
tail, 5.70; bill, 1.30 and .40; tarsus, 1.50; middle
toe, .97. Wing-formula, fourth, fifth, and sixth
equal; 7, 3, 8, 9, 2; first, 2.20, shorter than
longest. Graduation of tail, .50. _Hab._ Southern
Rocky Mountains (Fort Buchanan, and Copper Mines,
Arizona) var. _arizonæ_.

C. unicolor.[61] Lower parts bright blue, like the
upper. Entirely uniform rich ultramarine-blue; lores
black. Wing, 6.70; tail, 6.70; bill, 1.30 and .50;
tarsus, 1.45; middle toe, .95. Wing-formula, 5, 6, 4, 7,
3, 8, 9, 2; first, 2.60 shorter than longest. Graduation
of tail, 1.50. _Hab._ Southern Mexico (Cordova, Mirador,
etc.); Guatemala.

In the first section of this group we see the same indication of variation from a common type with the region that is so evident in _Cyanura_. Thus, _Cyanocitta woodhousei_ differs from _californica_, much as _Cyanura macrolopha_ does from _C. stelleri_ (var. _frontalis_), in more slender bill and a greater percentage of blue; this invading the back and under parts, the lower tail-coverts especially. But here the parallel of modification ends, for the Mexican representative of the species (_C. sumichrasti_) appears to revert back to the characters of _californica_, having like it a minimum amount of blue, though this almost obliterates the superciliary stripe of white. In this respect there is more resemblance to the case of _Pipilo fusca_ and its three races in the three regions inhabited by these representative forms of _Cyanocitta californica_; for, while the Mexican (_P. fusca_) and Californian (_P. crissalis_) are very much alike, the one from the intervening region (_P. mesoleuca_) is more different from the two extreme races than they are from each other.

In the other section of the genus the relation between _arizonæ_ and _sordida_ is a parallel to that between _Cyanura macrolopha_ and _C. coronata_; the southern forms (_sordida_ and _coronata_) differing principally in the greater intensity and prevalence or amount of the blue. The relations of _couchi_ and _ultramarina_ to the two above mentioned are yet obscure, owing to the small material at command,—there being only two specimens of the former, and none of the latter, in the National Museum at Washington.

[58] _Cyanocitta sumichrasti_, RIDGWAY, Rep. U. S. Geol.
Expl. 40th Par. All Mexican _Cyanocittas_ with a whitish
superciliary streak, blue edgings to jugular feathers, etc.,
are to be referred to this strongly marked race. A very
conspicuous character of this variety is the strong “hook”
to the upper mandible; the tip beyond the notch being much
elongated, or unusually “produced.” In the collection is a
specimen (60,058 ♀, Mexico, A. BOUCARD) which we have
referred to this race, but which differs in such an
important respect from all other specimens of the several
races referrible to _californica_, as extended, that it may
belong to a distinct form. Having the precise aspect of
_sumichrasti_ in regard to its upper plumage, it lacks,
however, any trace of the blue edgings and pectoral collar,
the whole lower parts being continuously uninterrupted dull
white, purer posteriorly. The appearance is such as to cause
a suspicion that it may be a link between _sumichrasti_ and
one of the races of _ultramarina_. It measures: wing, 5.50;
tail, 6.00; graduation of tail, .70.

[59] _Cyanocitta ultramarina_, (BONAP.)
STRICKLAND.—_Garrulus ultramarinus_, BONAP. J. A. N. S. IV,
1825, 386 (not of Audubon).

[60] _Cyanocitta sordida_, (SWAINS.) (not of BAIRD, Birds N.
Am., which is _arizonæ_).—SCLATER, Cat. Am. B. 1862, 143.
_Garrulus sordidus_, SWAINS. Phil. Mag. 1827, i, 437.

[61] _Cyanocitta unicolor_, (DU BUS) BONAP. Consp. p.
378.—_Cyanocorax unicolor_, DU BUS, Bull. Acad. Brux. XIV,
pt. 2, p. 103.

Cyanocitta floridana, BONAP.

FLORIDA JAY.

_Corvus floridanus_, BARTRAM, Travels, 1791, 291.—AUD. Orn. Biog.
I, 1831, 444, pl. lxxxvii. _Garrulus floridanus_, BON. Am. Orn.
II, 1828, 11, pl. xi.—NUTTALL, Man. I, 1832, 230.—AUD. Syn.
1839, 154.—IB. Birds Am. IV, 1842, 118, pl. ccxxxiii.
_Cyanurus floridanus_, SWAINSON, F. B. A. II, 1831, 495.
_Cyanocorax floridanus_, BON. List, 1838. _Cyanocitta
floridana_, BON. Consp. 1850, 377.—BAIRD, Birds N. Am. 1858,
586.—ALLEN, B. E. Fla. 298. _Aphelocoma floridana_, CABANIS,
Mus. Hein. 1851, 22. _Garrulus cyaneus_, VIEILLOT, Nouv. Dict.
XII, 1817, 476 (not described). _? Garrulus cærulescens_,
VIEILLOT, Nouv. Dict. XII, 1817, 480.—ORD. J. A. N. Sc. I,
1818, 347. _Pica cærulescens_, WAGLER, Syst. Av. 1827, _Pica_,
No. 11.

SP. CHAR. Tail much graduated; lateral feathers nearly 1.50 inches shortest. Tail an inch longer than the wings. Above blue, including scapulars; interscapular region and back brownish-ash, the former lighter. Forehead and sides of the crown, including the nasal feathers, hoary white. Sides of head and neck blue; the former tinged with blackish, the latter sending a streaked collar of the same entirely across the breast; region anterior to this collar dirty white, streaked on the edges of the feathers with blue; rest of under parts dirty whitish-brown; under tail-coverts blue, the tibia tinged with the same. Length, 11.00; wing, 4.50; tail, 5.70; tarsus, 1.45.

HAB. Florida only, and quite local.

HABITS. This beautiful species appears to be exclusively confined to the peninsula of Florida, and there is no authentic evidence that it has ever been found outside of the limits of that State. The statement of Bonaparte, that these birds are found in the States of Louisiana and Kentucky, has never been confirmed, and Mr. Audubon, who was for many years a resident of both States and familiar with the birds of each, was very positive the statement was without foundation. It has never been observed even in Georgia or Alabama, and Mr. Nuttall states that it is not found in any part of West Florida.

Mr. Allen, in his recent paper on the winter birds of East Florida, speaking of this species, states that it is numerous in the scrub, but does not appear to frequent the pine woods, the hummocks, or the swamps. He saw none along the St. John’s, except at Blue Springs, but they occur in numbers a few miles back from the river.

Dr. Bryant, in his Notes on the birds of Florida, mentions that this species is tolerably plentiful in the vicinity of Enterprise. He regarded it as exceedingly interesting on account of its limited geographical distribution. With no apparent obstacle to its movements, it is yet confined to a small part of the peninsula of Florida, its area of distribution north and south not exceeding three degrees of latitude, if so much. He saw none north of St. Augustine, and none south of Jupiter’s Inlet. So far as he observed them, they were exclusively confined to the growth of scrub-oak, which in many places is so entangled with creeping plants that it is impossible to walk through without cutting a path. This growth is generally found on elevated ridges running parallel to the sea-coast. The most extensive of these, near Enterprise, is about three miles wide, and eighty feet above the lake.

The flight of this species is said by Mr. Audubon to be performed at a short distance from the ground, and to consist either of a single sailing sweep, as it passes from one tree to another, or of continuous flappings with a slightly undulating motion, in the manner of the Canada Jay. Its notes are described as softer than those of the Blue Jay, and more frequently uttered. Its motions are also quicker and more abrupt. Its food is said to consist of snails, which it collects on the ground, insects, and various kinds of fruits and berries. It is also charged with being very destructive of eggs and young birds.

The Florida Jay is said to be easily kept in confinement, feeding readily on dried or fresh fruit and the kernels of various nuts, and soon appears to be reconciled to its loss of liberty. It secures its food between its feet, and breaks it into pieces before swallowing it. In this way it feeds on the acorn of the live-oak, snails, and the seeds of the sword-palmetto.

The nest of this Jay is formed of dry sticks, placed across each other, and, although rounded in form, is so lightly made that the birds may be seen through its interstices. It is lined with fibrous rootlets. Only one brood is raised in a season. Audubon’s descriptions of its eggs are inaccurate, and only applicable to those of the Blue Jay.

Mr. Audubon observed a pair of these birds in confinement in New Orleans. They were fed upon rice and dry fruit. At dessert they were allowed their liberty, when they would fly to the table, feed on the almonds given them, and drink claret diluted with water. They attempted to mimic various sounds, but did so very imperfectly.

Mr. Nuttall states that at the approach of winter these birds retire to the south of St. Augustine. He regards their voice as less harsh than that of the Blue Jay, and states that they have a variety of notes, some of which are probably imitations, and are said to resemble the song of the Wood Thrush and the calls of the common Jay.

An egg of the Florida Jay before me is of a rounded oval shape, being nearly equally obtuse at either end. The ground-color is a light bluish-gray, marked almost exclusively at the larger end with a few small spots of a light rufous-brown. It has no near resemblance to the eggs of the California Jay, nor to those of any other Jay that I have seen. It measures 1.05 inches by .80.

In its flight and action, Dr. Bryant thought the Florida Jay resembled the Mocking-Bird. It has none of the restless, suspicious manner of the Blue Jay. He never heard it utter more than a single note, this being much softer than the usual cry of the Blue Jay; its song he regarded as rather monotonous. It seldom flies more than a short distance at a time, and seems to trust for protection to the difficulty of access to its abode. It also evinces a great partiality for particular localities. Generally only a single pair is seen at a time, though in one place he has seen three pairs together. It is not fond of civilization, and is seldom known to frequent the vicinity of dwellings.

A nest found by Dr. Bryant on the 15th of April was built in a scrub-oak about three feet from the ground. It was made of small twigs, compactly and carefully lined with fibres of the dwarf palmetto, that had apparently been brought a distance of half a mile. The cavity measured about five inches in breadth and one and a half in depth. The nest contained three eggs of a light blue, sparingly sprinkled with rufous, the spots being larger and more numerous towards the larger end. Another nest, found a few days later, contained five eggs of a more neutral tint, with the spots darker, larger, and more evenly distributed.

Cyanocitta californica, STRICKLAND.

CALIFORNIA JAY.

_Garrulus californicus_, VIGORS, Zoöl. Beechey’s Voyage, 1839, 21,
pl. v. _Cyanocitta californica_, STRICKLAND, Ann. Mag. XV,
1845, 342.—GAMBEL, J. A. N. Sc. 2d series, I, Dec. 1847,
45.—BON. Conspectus, 1850, 377.—NEWBERRY, P. R. R. Rep. VI,
IV, 1857, 85.—BAIRD, Birds N. Am. 1858, 584.—HEERM. X, _S_,
55.—COOPER, Orn. Cal. 1, 1870, 302. _Cyanocorax californicus_,
GAMBEL, Pr. A. N. Sc. III, Ap. 1847, 201. _Aphelocoma
californica_, CABANIS, Mus. Hein. 1851, 221.—BON. Comptes
Rendus, XXXVII, Nov. 1853, 828; Notes Orn. Delattre. _Corvus
ultramarinus_, AUD. Orn. Biog. IV, 1838, 456, pl. ccclxii (not
_Garrulus ultramarinus_, BON.). _Garrulus ultramarinus_, AUD.
Syn. 1839, 154.—IB. Birds Am. IV, 1842, 115, pl. ccxxxii (not
of BONAPARTE). _Cyanocitta superciliosa_, STRICKLAND, Ann. Mag.
XV, 1845, 260 (type of genus _Cyanocitta_). “_Corvus
palliatus_, DRAPIEZ,” BONAP.

SP. CHAR. Width of bill at base of lower mandible rather more than half the length of culmen. Lateral tail-feathers about an inch the shortest. Tail an inch longer than the wings. General color above, including the surface of the wings, bright blue, without bars. The whole back, including to some extent the scapulars, brownish-ash, very faintly glossed with blue in the adult. À streaked white superciliary line from a little anterior to the eye as far as the occiput. Sides of the head and neck blue, the region around and behind the eye, including lores and most of ear-coverts, black. The blue of the sides of the neck extends across the forepart of the breast, forming a crescent, interrupted in the middle. The under parts anterior to the crescent white, the feathers edged with blue; behind it dull white; the sides tinged with brown. Length, 12.25; wing, 5.00; tail, 6.15; tarsus, 1.55. (No. 2,841.)

HAB. Pacific Province from Columbia River to Cape St. Lucas; Carson City, Nevada (RIDGWAY).

Specimens from Cape St. Lucas are rather smaller and perhaps whiter beneath than elsewhere; those from the eastern slope of Sierra Nevada are very large. Upon a careful comparison, we find that the supposed specimens of _C. californica_ in the Smithsonian collection from Mexico (Orizaba, etc.) constitute a quite different form, characterized by very indistinct superciliary white and bluish edges to throat and jugular feathers, and especially by the lengthened wings, which average 5.75 inches instead of 5.00. In general respects the resemblance, as suggested by Sclater, is to _californica_, and not to _woodhousei_. The dorsal patch is very distinct.

One Mexican specimen (8,465 from Real del Monte?), presented by Mr. John Gould, differs again in having the dorsal patch obscured by a bluish wash; an unusual amount of blue edging to the throat and jugular feathers, and a dull brownish tinge to the belly. It almost suggests the possibility of a hybrid form between _sumichrasti_ and _ultramarina_.

HABITS. The California Jay appears to be a Pacific coast species, occurring from the Columbia River southward to Cape St. Lucas, but not found in the interior at any considerable distance from the coast. Mr. Ridgway speaks of it as the Valley Jay of California, having been observed by him in abundance only among the oaks of the Sacramento Valley, the brushwood of the ravines, and the scattered pines of the foot-hills along the western base of the Sierra Nevada. It was also quite common, in April, in the vicinity of Carson City, where he found it breeding. Its notes and manners, he adds, are very similar to those of the Woodhouse Jay, belonging to the wooded regions of the interior, but the shrill cries of this species are even more piercing. There is, moreover, something in its appearance, caused by the sharp contrast of the bright blue, the light ash, and the pure white colors, by which it may be distinguished at a glance from the more uniformly colored _woodhousei_.

Dr. Heerman speaks of it as frequenting to some extent the same districts as Steller’s Jay, but also found in greater abundance throughout the valleys. He likewise describes it as noisy, alert, and cunning in its habits, wild and wary, and yet often seeking the habitations of man, near which to rear its young, drawn thither by the abundance of food found in such localities. Their nests, he states, are built in a thick-leaved bush, or on the lower branches of an oak, at but little height from the ground. They are constructed of twigs, and are lined with fine rootlets. The eggs, four in number, are, he says, emerald-green in color, profusely dotted with umber-brown spots.

Dr. Newberry states that he found the trees and the thickets bordering the streams in the valleys the favorite haunts of the California Jay. As his party ascended among the evergreen forests of the higher grounds, and passed northeasterly from the Sacramento Valley, these birds were no longer met with, and long before reaching the Oregon line they lost sight of it altogether. Nor did they meet with it again until their return to California. This Jay, he adds, has all the sprightliness and restlessness of the family, but is less noisy, and its notes are far more agreeable than those of Steller’s Jay, by which it is replaced at the north.

The Smithsonian Museum has a specimen of this species obtained on the Columbia by Townsend, and Mr. Nuttall mentions that early in October, on arriving at the forests of the Columbia, near Fort Vancouver, he met with it in company with Steller’s Jay. They were breeding in the dark pine woods, and by the 15th of June they were feeding their fully fledged young. He also states that they were found as far north as Fraser’s River, migrating to the south at the approach of winter. Without questioning the correctness of this statement, it is worthy of mention that these birds have not been met there by more recent collectors, and that Dr. Newberry nowhere met with them in Oregon. Dr. Cooper suggests that, since then, the increased severity of the winters may have driven them permanently farther south.

Mr. Nuttall describes its habits as very much like those of the Blue Jay. It usually flies out to the tops of the tallest pines, jerks its tail, and perches playfully on some extreme branch, where, as if in anger, it calls _woit, woit-woit_, with an occasional recognition note of _twee-twee_. When pursued, it retreats to the shade of the loftiest branches. It feeds on insects, acorns, which it breaks up, and pine seeds. He describes it as a graceful, active, and shy bird, with a note much less harsh and loud than that of Steller’s Jay.

Dr. Cooper remarks that this species is one of the most common and conspicuous of the birds of the State of California. They frequent every locality in which oak-trees are found, even within the limits of large towns, where they enter gardens and audaciously plunder the fruit. They have all the usual cunning of their tribe, and when alarmed become very quiet, and conceal themselves in the thick foliage. They are usually noisy and fearless, and their odd cries, grotesque actions, and bright plumage make them general favorites in spite of their depredations. They are also said to have a talent for mimicry, besides notes to express their various wants and ideas.

They breed abundantly throughout the western parts of California, and construct a large and strong nest of twigs, roots, and grass. These are placed in a low tree or bush. They lay about five eggs, which Dr. Cooper describes as dark green marked with numerous pale brown blotches and spots, and measure 1.80 by 1.04 inches. At San Diego he found these eggs laid as early as April 5.

This Jay inhabits the Coast Range of mountains to their summit, south of San Francisco, and the Sierra Nevada as far as the oaks extend, or to an elevation of from 1,000 to 5,000 feet. Dr. Cooper saw none on the east side of the Sierra Nevada in latitude 39°.

He describes their flight as slow and laborious, on account of their short wings, and states that they never fly far at a time. He also accuses them of being very destructive to the eggs of smaller birds, hunting for them in the spring, and watching the movements of other birds with great attention.

Mr. Xantus found these birds very abundant at Cape St. Lucas, being, like all the other resident species there, much smaller than those occurring in more northern localities. Their habits are said to be very much the same.

This species was taken in winter near Oaxaca, Mexico, by Mr. Boucard.

Four eggs of this species from different parts of California present the following measurements: 1.20 × 0.85; 1.10 × 0.80; 1.13 × 0.80; 1.05 × 0.80. The measurements given by Dr. Cooper we are confident must be a mistake. Their ground-color is a bright, but not a dark, emerald-green; and they are marked and blotched with faint purplish-brown, and deeper spots of dark umber. These spots are sparingly distributed, and are chiefly about the larger end. In one they are wholly of a light violet-brown. These eggs are of a perfectly oval shape.

Mr. Charles D. Gibbes, of Stockton, writes that he found in a garden in that city a nest built by a pair of these birds that had become half domesticated. It was placed in a very thick arbor of honeysuckle. The body of the nest was composed of clippings from a hedge of osage orange, with thorns on them half an inch long. These twigs were tied and interlaced with twine and bits of cotton strings. Within this frame was a layer of fine weeds and grasses nicely arranged, the whole lined with horse-hair. The nest was found in May, and contained five eggs. The parents kept a good deal about the kitchen door, and would steal anything they had an opportunity to take. They made use of an old nest in the same garden as a receptacle for their stolen goods; among other things was found a large slice of bread-and-butter.

Cyanocitta californica, var. woodhousei, BAIRD.

WOODHOUSE’S JAY.

_Cyanocitta woodhousei_, BAIRD, Birds N. Am. 1858, 585, pl.
lix.—IB. Mex. B. II, Birds, 20, pl. xxi.—COOPER, Orn. Cal. 1,
1870, 304.

SP. CHAR. Size and general appearance of _C. californica_. Bill slender. Graduation of tail one inch. Blue, with a very obscure ashy patch on the back. Sides of the head and neck and incomplete pectoral collar, blue; throat streaked with the same. Breast and belly uniform brownish-ash, glossed with blue; under tail-coverts bright blue. Sides of head, including lores, black, glossed with blue below; a streaked white superciliary line. Length, 11.50; wing, 5.35; tail, 6.10; tarsus, 1.60. _Young._ All the blue, except that of the wings and tail, replaced by dull ash.

HAB. Rocky Mountains and Middle Province of United States; north to Idaho and Wyoming (RIDGWAY); south to Northern Mexico; east to Wyoming and Colorado.

The bluish wash on the back nearly obscuring the dorsal patch, the general ashy tinge of the under parts, the decided blue under tail-coverts, and the longer and much slenderer bill, distinguish this form from _californica_, although probably both are geographical races of the same species.

HABITS. This bird was first met with by Dr. Woodhouse among the San Francisco Mountains of New Mexico, and was given by him, in his Report of the Sitgreaves Expedition, as the California Jay. He states in regard to it, that wherever he found the piñon, or nut-pine (_Pinus edulis_), growing in New Mexico, this bird was sure to be there in great numbers, feeding upon the fruit of those trees. Among the men it was known as the piñon bird. Its notes are said to be harsh and disagreeable. It was extremely restless, and was continually in motion, flying from tree to tree, uttering its well-known cries.

Mr. Ridgway calls this a very interesting species, and states that it was found very abundant in the fertile cañons of the West Humboldt Mountains, as well as in all the extensive nut-pine and cedar woods to the eastward. On the Toyaba and East Humboldt Mountains, and the extensive piñon woods in Southern Idaho, it was equally common. In Utah, in the cañons of the Wahsatch Mountains, it was occasionally seen, though oftener observed in the valley of the Weber. When unmolested, this bird is, he states, very unsuspicious, and anything unusual at once excites its curiosity. Often when at work, in camp, skinning birds, on the edge of bushes, one of them would approach within a few feet, and quietly watch every movement. At Unionsville they were quite common in the gardens and around the door-yards of the town, and were very familiar and unsuspicious. Their cries greatly resembled those of the California Jay, and consisted of a repetition of harsh screeching notes.

This species, according to Dr. Coues, is a resident and a very abundant species in Arizona, where it is one of the most characteristic species. It was found in all situations, but seemed to shun dense pine woods, and to prefer to keep on the open hillsides, among the scrub-oaks, etc. In winter it collects in rather large flocks, sometimes as many as fifty together. They are, however, usually seen in small groups of six or seven individuals. They are said to be a restless, vigilant, shy, and noisy species.

Mr. C. E. Aiken found this bird a common and resident species in Colorado. He met with it along the foot of the mountains, in brush thickets, in which they also breed. The base and periphery of a nest found by him were composed of dead twigs, intermingled within with fine rootlets and horsehair. The eggs, four or five in number, are said to be laid about the first of May. They have a ground-color of a light bluish-green, and marked with reddish-brown specks, thickest at the larger end. They are of a rounded oval shape, much more pointed at one end, and rounded at the other, and average 1.06 inches in length by .80 of an inch in breadth.

Cyanocitta ultramarina, var. arizonæ, RIDGWAY.

_Cyanocitta sordida_ (not of SWAINS.!), BAIRD, Birds N. Am. 1858,
587, pl. lx. f. 1.—IB. Mex. B. II, Birds, 21, pl. xxii, f.
1.—COOPER, Orn. Cal. 1, 1870, 305. _Cyanocitta sordida_ var.
_arizonæ_, RIDGWAY, Rep. U. S. Geol. Expl. 40th Par.

SP. CHAR. Bill short, thick; half as high as long. Wing considerably longer than the tail, which is slightly graduated (.50 of an inch). Upper surface (including whole side of head to the throat) light sky-blue, the whole dorsal region inclining to pure bluish-ashy. Beneath fine, uniform, pale ash for anterior half (including the throat), this gradually fading into white on the posterior portions (including whole abdomen), the lower tail-coverts being pure white. Lores blue. Length, 13.00; wing, 6.20; tail, 5.70; culmen, 1.30; depth of bill, .40; tarsus, 1.50; middle toe, .97. Fourth, fifth, and sixth quills equal and longest, second shorter than ninth; first 2.20 shorter than longest. (18,279, Fort Buchanan, Arizona, December; Dr. Irwin.) _Immature_ (8,469 ♂, Copper Mines, Arizona). The blue, except that of the wings and tail, replaced by dull ash; the blue feathers appearing in scattered patches.

HAB. Arizona (Copper Mines, J. H. Clark; and Fort Buchanan, Dr. Irwin, U. S. A.).

The nearest ally of this race is the var. _sordida_ of Mexico, which, however, differs in many important respects; the differences between the two being giving in the synopsis (page 880), it is unnecessary to repeat them here. In both there is a tendency towards a party-colored bill; each example of the northern style, and most of those of the southern, having more or less whitish on the lower mandible.

Nothing definite is known as to the habits or reproduction of this bird.

Cyanocitta ultramarina, var. couchi, BAIRD.

ULTRAMARINE JAY.

_Garrulus ultramarinus_, BONAP. J. A. N. Sc. IV, 1825, 386 (not of
AUDUBON).—TEMM. Pl. Col. II, 439. _Cyanocitta ultramarina_,
STRICKLAND, Ann. & Mag. XV, 1845, 260.—GAMBEL, J. A. N. Sc. 2d
Ser. I, 1847, 45.—BAIRD, Birds N. Am. 588, pl. 60, f. 2.—IB.
Mex. B. II, Birds 21, pl. xxii. _Cyanogarrulus ultramarinus_,
BON. Consp. 1850, 378. _Cyanocitta couchi_, BAIRD, Birds N. Am.
1858, 588.

SP. CHAR. Tail rounded, but little graduated; lateral feather about a quarter of an inch shortest. Wings longer than the tail; when closed, reaching nearly to its middle. Above and on sides of head and neck bright blue; the lores blackish; the middle of the back slightly duller, the tips of some of the feathers dark brown. Beneath brownish-ash, paler on the chin and towards the anal region, which, with the crissum, is white. No trace of white or black on the sides of the head, nor of any streaks or collar on the breast. Length, (fresh,) 11.50; wing, 6.00; tail, (dried,) 5.40; tarsus, 1.50.

HAB. South side of valley of Rio Grande, near the coast, and southward.

This well-marked species is quite different in form from the _C. californica_, having a shorter, more even tail, much longer wings, and stouter feet. The absence of any collar or streaks on the breast and throat, of black or white on the side of the head, and of decided ash on the back, are very well marked features. There is also much more green in the blue of the head.

As suggested in the P. R. R. Report, the birds collected by Lieutenant Couch at Monterey, Mexico, although agreeing almost exactly with the original description of Bonaparte, are much smaller, and perhaps entitled to recognition as a separate form. The tail is nearly two inches less, 5.40 instead of 7.00, or over.

HABITS. The Ultramarine Jay is a well-marked species, and is specifically quite distinct from the _C. californica_. It is found in the valley of the Rio Grande, and thence southward and eastward in the northern provinces of Mexico. Though we know of no specimens having been procured on this side of the boundary line, their occurrence is quite probable. Lieutenant Couch met with this species near Monterey, Mexico, and from thence west to Parras. He describes it as being gregarious and eminently Jay-like in its habits. They are very noisy and vociferous in their outcries, and three or four of them suffice to keep a whole forest in an uproar. Near Guyapuco a large snake (_Georgia obsoleta_) was seen pursued by three or four of this species. The reptile was making every effort to escape from their combined attacks, and would, no doubt, have been killed by them, had they not been interfered with. The cause of so much animosity against the snake was explained when, on opening its stomach, three young of this species, about two thirds grown, were found.

In the Department of Vera Cruz, Sumichrast found what he calls _C. ultramarina_ in company with _Cyanura coronata_ and _Cyanocitta nana_, “_californica_” (_Sumichrasti_), and _sordida_, occurring in the alpine region, and with the three first named restricted to that locality. The limit of their extension is about that of the alpine region, that is, from an elevation of about 4,500 feet to the height of 10,500 feet. The _sordida_ is also found on the plateau.

GENUS XANTHOURA, BONAP.

_Xanthoura_, BONAPARTE, Consp. Av. 1850. (Type, “_Corvus
peruvianus_, GM.”)

[Line drawing: _Xanthoura luxuosa._
4052]

CHAR. Head without crest. Throat black. Lateral tail-feathers bright yellow. Bill very stout, rather higher than broad; culmen curved from the base. Nostrils rather small, oval, concealed by a nasal tuft varying in length with species. Tail longer than the wings; graduated. The wings concave, rounded; the secondaries nearly as long as the primaries. Legs very stout; hind claw about half the total length of the toe.

The genus _Xanthoura_ is composed of three so-called species, of different geographical distribution, and exhibits a progressive change from one to the other, with variation of latitude that enforces assent to the hypothesis of their all belonging to one primitive form. These differences may be expressed as follows:—

COMMON CHARACTERS. Nasal tufts, patch on side of lower jaw and one above eye, (both eyelids,) bright blue; remainder of face and throat black. Back, and upper surface of wings and tail (the four central feathers), green, the latter tinged with blue at end; the rest of tail-feathers bright yellow. Belly and crissum varying from bright yellow to green. Forehead yellowish or whitish.

_a._ Nasal tufts short, only covering the nostrils; whole
top of head (except anteriorly) and nape bright blue.

1. Body beneath, and crissum, green. _Hab._ Mexico and
South Texas var. _luxuosa_.

2. Body beneath, and crissum, yellow, sides more
greenish. _Hab._ Guatemala and Honduras var. _guatemalensis_.

_b._ Nasal tuft elongated, forming an anterior crest, the
feathers reaching far beyond nostrils. Whole top of head
pale heavy yellow, glossed behind with bluish.

3. Body beneath, and crissum, very bright
gamboge-yellow. _Hab._ Colombia, Ecuador, Bogota, and
Bolivia var. _incas_.

Thus, starting with the green-bellied _luxuosa_ of the Rio Grande, we come to the yellow-bellied _guatemalensis_; but intermediate localities show different proportions of the two colors. The nasal tufts in the first do not extend beyond the nasal fossæ; and the frontal yellowish is very narrow. In the second these tufts reach beyond the fossæ, and the frontal yellowish is more extended. In _incas_ again the nasal tufts have reached their maximum, while the frontal yellowish extends over the whole cap, leaving only a trace of blue on the nape.

Xanthoura incas, var. luxuosa, BONAP.

GREEN JAY.

_Garrulus luxuosus_, LESSON, Rev. Zoöl. April, 1839, 100.
_Cyanocorax luxuosus_, DU BUS, Esquisses Ornithologiques, IV,
1848, pl. xviii.—CASSIN, Illust. I, 1853, I, pl. i. _Xanthoura
luxuosa_, BON. Consp. 1850, 380.—CABANIS, Mus. Hein. 1851,
224.—BAIRD, Birds N. Am. 1858, 589. _Pica chloronota_, WAGLER,
Isis, 1829, 750 (young male; name belongs to _Corvus
peruvianus_, GM.). _Cyanocorax cyanicapillus_, CABANIS, Fauna
Peruana, 1844-46, 233 (note). _Cyanocorax yncas_, “BODDÆRT,”
LAWRENCE, Ann. N. Y. Lyc. V, April, 1851, 115 (first added here
to fauna of United States).

SP. CHAR. Wings shorter than the tail, which is much graduated, the lateral feathers 1.25 inches shorter. Above green; beneath yellow, glossed continuously with green; inside of wings and outer four tail-feathers straw-yellow; rest of tail feathers green, glossed with blue. Sides of the head, and beneath from the bill to the forepart of the breast, velvet-black. Crown, nape, and a short maxillary stripe running up to the eye and involving the upper eyelid, brilliant blue; the nostril-feathers rather darker; the sides of the forehead whitish. Bill black; feet lead-color. Length, 11.00; wing, 4.75; tail, 5.40; tarsus, 1.65.

HAB. Valley of Rio Grande, of Texas, and southward.

As remarked above, the passage into the yellow-bellied _guatemalensis_ is gradual as we proceed south; and the latter, and perhaps even the _incas_, can only be considered as fellow races of a common original species.

HABITS. Within the limits of the United States this beautiful species has thus far been only met with in Southeastern Texas in the lower valley of the Rio Grande. It was first described in 1839, by M. Lesson, a French naturalist, from a Mexican specimen, and in 1851 was first brought to our notice as a bird of the United States by Mr. Geo. N. Lawrence of New York. Specimens of this bird were obtained by the party of the Mexican Boundary Survey, and by Lieutenant Couch on the Rio Grande, at Matamoras, New Leon, and San Diego, Mexico. The only note as to its habits by Lieutenant Couch is to the effect that it eats seeds and insects.

The late Dr. Berlandier of Matamoras obtained specimens of this bird in the vicinity of that city, which were found among his collections. Among his manuscript notes occurs a description of the plumage and habits of this species, which he had described under the name of _Pica cervantesii_. In this he states that this bird inhabits the whole eastern coast of Mexico, but that he has only met with it on the banks of the Rio Bravo del Norte, in the vicinity of Matamoras. It is said to be both carnivorous and graminivorous, and comes about the houses in search of the refuse. Although it can swallow whole grains of corn, before eating it breaks them with its beak, holding them between its claws, in the manner of birds of prey, and biting with great force. It is commonly known as _Pajaro verde_, or Greenbird.

Mr. Dresser states that this species was common on the lower Rio Grande during the winter, but was not found on the Upper Rio Grande or in Texas, except as a straggler from Mexico.

This bird, Mr. Sumichrast states, is common throughout the Department of Vera Cruz, where it is generally known by the name of _Verde detoca_ and _Sonaja_. It is said to be one of the birds most generally diffused throughout the whole department. It inhabits both the hot and the temperate regions, and is found even at the foot of the alpine, to the altitude of nearly six thousand feet above the sea. It is also said to be abundant in other parts of Mexico. It was observed to be quite numerous on the _Tierra templada_, or table-lands, and also among the hills that bound the plains of Perote and Puebla on the east, by Mr. William S. Pease, a naturalist who was with General Scott’s army in its campaign in Mexico. Mr. Pease stated that it lived on the sides of the hills throughout the year, and that its local name was _Pepe verde_.

Colonel George A. McCall, Inspector-General of the United States Army, was the first person to collect these birds within our limits. He obtained them in the forests that border the Rio Grande on the southeastern frontier of Texas. There he found them all mated in the month of May, and he felt no doubt that they had their nests in the extensive and almost impenetrable thickets of mimosa, commonly called chaparral. From the jealousy and pugnacity which these birds manifested on the approach, or appearance even, of the large boat-tailed Blackbirds of that country (_Quiscalus macrurus_), which were nesting in great numbers in the vicinity, Colonel McCall was satisfied that the Jays were at that time also engaged in the duties of incubation and rearing their young. In character and temperament these birds appeared to be very active and lively, though less noisy than some other species of the family. Their gay plumage was exhibited to great advantage as they flitted from tree to tree, or dashed boldly in pursuit of such of their more plainly attired neighbors as ventured to intrude upon their domain.

Captain J. P. McCown, also quoted by Mr. Cassin, furnishes some additional observations in regard to these birds. He states that during the several years that he was in Texas, he frequently saw these Jays, but never met with them above Ringgold Barracks, or north of the woods that skirt the Rio Grande. They seemed to prefer the acacia groves which have sprung up where the ground has been overflowed. He regards it as a rather cautious bird. He observed nests high up in the trees above mentioned, which he supposes belong to this species, though this was never positively ascertained. He had no doubt that they breed in Texas.

GENUS PERISOREUS, BONAP.

_Perisoreus_, BONAP. Saggio di una dist. met. 1831. (Type, _Corvus
canadensis?_)
_Dysornithia_, SWAINSON, F. B. Am. II, 1831, 495. (Same type.)

CHAR. Feathers lax and full, especially on the back, and of very dull colors, without any blue. Head without distinct crest. Bill very short; broader than high. Culmen scarcely half the length of the head; straight to near the tip, then slightly curved; gonys more curved than culmen. Bill notched at tip. Nostrils round, covered by bristly feathers. Tail about equal to the wings; graduated. Tarsi rather short; but little longer than the middle toe. Plumage very soft, and without any lustre.

The Canada Jay has a near ally in a species of northern Europe and Siberia,—the Siberian Jay (_P. infaustus_). In size and proportions the two are quite identical, there being about the same proportionate length of wing and tail, and a general correspondence in the minutiæ of external anatomy. In colors, however, they differ entirely; the _P. infaustus_ having the head darker than the body, and uniform (instead of the contrary), and in having the lower primary and lower feathers of the greater coverts, as well as the greater part of the tail, bright rufous.

A. Dusky nuchal hood reaching forward to, or in front of,
the eyes; plumbeous-black.

_Dorsal feathers with white shafts in old and
young. Tail-feathers not distinctly paler at ends._

1. White frontal patch narrower than length of the bill;
blending gradually with the blackish of the crown. Upper
parts umber-brownish. Wing, 5.50; tail, 5.40; bill, .90
and .30. _Young._ Entirely plumbeous-brown, feathers of
head above bordered with paler. Beneath paler, whitish
brown. _Hab._ Oregon, Washington Territory, British
Columbia, etc. var. _obscurus_.

_Dorsal feathers without white shafts in old or
young. Tail-feathers broadly tipped with dull
white._

2. White frontal patch much broader than length of bill;
abruptly defined, with a convex outline behind, against
the dusky of the occiput. Upper parts plumbeous, with a
slight brownish cast. Wing, 5.25; tail, 5.80; bill, .95
and .35. _Young._ Entirely uniform dark plumbeous. _Hab._
Canada, Maine, and Labrador to the Yukon var. _canadensis_.

B. Dusky nuchal hood not reaching to the eyes, but
confined to the nape; bluish-plumbeous.

3. White frontal patch covering whole crown, melting
gradually into the ashy of the nape; upper parts
bluish-ashy. Wing, 6.00; tail, 6.00; bill, 1.00 and .31.
_Young._ Bluish-plumbeous, inclining to ashy-white on
the crown and cheeks. _Hab._ Rocky Mountains of United
States var. _capitalis_.

[Line drawing: _Perisoreus canadensis._
18440 8452]

In the more slender form, longer and narrower bill, and paler tints with a predominance of the light colors, of the var. _capitalis_, compared with the typical, or standard, var. _canadensis_, we see the peculiar impression of the middle region; while in the var. _obscurus_, the more dusky tints, and predominance of darker colors, the influence of the well-known law affecting colors in birds of the northwest coast region is seen.

Perisoreus canadensis, BONAP.

CANADA JAY; WHISKEY-JACK; MOOSE-BIRD.