Chapter 31

Illustration: Cyanocitta californicaCyanocitta californica.Specimens from CapeSt.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 ofC. californicain 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 tocalifornica, and not towoodhousei. The dorsal patch is very distinct.Illustration: Color plate 40PLATEXL.Illustration: Color plate 40 detail 11.Cyanocitta californica.♂Nev., 56642.Illustration: Color plate 40 detail 22.Cyanocitta californica.var.sumichrasti.♂Orizaba, 42129.Illustration: Color plate 40 detail 33.Cyanocitta woodhousii.♂Nev., 53647.Illustration: Color plate 40 detail 44.Cyanocitta floridana.♂Fla., 13734.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 betweensumichrastiandultramarina.Habits.The California Jay appears to be a Pacific coast species, occurring from the Columbia River southward to CapeSt.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 coloredwoodhousei.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 thecorrectness 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 callswoit, woit-woit, with an occasional recognition note oftwee-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 CapeSt.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 ofC. 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 fromcalifornica, 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 extremelyrestless, 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 ofSwains.!),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 sordidavar.arizonæ,Ridgway,Rep. U. S. Geol. Expl. 40th Par.Illustration: Color plate 41PLATEXLI.Illustration: Color plate 41 detail 11.Cyanocitta sordida. Orizaba, 38209.Illustration: Color plate 41 detail 22.Cyanocitta sordida.var.arizonæ.♂Ariz., 18279.Illustration: Color plate 41 detail 33.Perisoreus canadensis.♂Nova Scotia, 26940.Illustration: Color plate 41 detail 44.Perisoreus canadensis.var.capitalis.♂Colorado, 51642.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), thelower 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 thevar.sordidaof 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 ofAudubon).—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 theC. 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 theP. 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 theC. californica. It is found in the valley of the Rio Grande, and thence southward and eastward in the northern provinces ofMexico. 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 callsC. ultramarinain company withCyanura coronataandCyanocitta nana, “californica” (Sumichrasti), andsordida, 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. Thesordidais also found on the plateau.GenusXANTHOURA,Bonap.Xanthoura,Bonaparte,Consp. Av.1850. (Type, “Corvus peruvianus,Gm.”)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.Illustration: Xanthoura luxuosaXanthoura luxuosa.4052The genusXanthourais 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 hypothesisof 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-belliedluxuosaof the Rio Grande, we come to the yellow-belliedguatemalensis; 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. Inincasagain 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 toCorvus 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-belliedguatemalensisis gradual as we proceed south; and the latter, and perhaps even theincas, can only be considered as fellow races of a common original species.Illustration: Xanthoura luxuosaXanthoura luxuosa.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, byM.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 ofPica 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 asPajaro 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 ofVerde detocaandSonaja. 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 theTierra 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 whowas 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 wasPepe 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.GenusPERISOREUS,Bonap.Perisoreus,Bonap.Saggio di unadist. 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; theP. infaustushaving 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, WashingtonTerritory, 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.Illustration: Perisoreus canadensisPerisoreus canadensis.18440   8452In the more slender form, longer and narrower bill, and paler tints with a predominance of the light colors, of thevar.capitalis, compared with the typical, or standard,var.canadensis, we see the peculiar impression of the middle region; while in thevar.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.Corvus canadensis,Linn.Syst. Nat. I, 1766, 158.—Forster,Phil. Trans. LXII, 1772, 382.—Wilson,Am. Orn. III, 1811, 33,pl. xxi.—Bon.Obs.1824,No.42.—Aud.Orn. Biog. II, 1834, 53;V, 1839, 208,pl. cvii.Garrulus canadensis,Bon.(Saggio, 1831?)Syn.1828, 58.—Swainson,F. Bor.-Am. II, 1831, 295.—Nuttall,Man. I, 1832, 232.—Aud.Syn.1839, 155.—Ib.Birds Am. IV, 1842, 121,pl. ccxxxiv.Dysornithia canadensis,Swainson,F. Bor.-Am. II, 1831, Appendix.Perisoreus canadensis,Bon.List, 1838.—Ib.Conspectus, 1850, 375.—Cab.Mus. Hein.1851, 219.—Newberry,Rep. P. R. R. Surv. VI,IV, 1857, 85.—Baird,Birds N. Am.1858, 590.—Coues,P. A. N. S.1861, 226.—Samuels, 366.Garrulus fuscus,Vieillot,Nouv. Dict. XII, 1817, 479.Pica nuchalis,Wagler,Syst. Av.1827 (PicaNo.14).Garrulus trachyrrhynchus,Swainson,F. Bor.-Am. II, 1831, 296,pl. lv(young). “Coracias mexicanus,Temminck,”Gray.Illustration: Perisoreus canadensisPerisoreus canadensis.Sp. Char.Tail graduated; lateral feathers about one inch shortest. Wings a little shorter than the tail. Head and neck and forepart of breast white. A rather sooty plumbeous nuchal patch, becoming darker behind, from the middle of the cap to the back, from which it is separated by an interrupted whitish collar. Rest of upper parts dark ashy-plumbeous; the outer primaries margined, the secondaries, tertials, and tail-feathers obscurely tipped with white. Beneath smoky-gray. Crissum whitish. Bill and feet black. Length, 10.70; wing, 5.75; tail, 6.00; tarsus, 1.40.Hab.Eastern Northern America into the northern part of United States; British America to Upper Yukon.The young of this species are everywhere of a dull sooty-plumbeous, lighter on the middle of the belly, and more bluish-plumbeous on the wings and tail. With increasing age the region about the base of the bill whitens.There is a decided bluish cast to the plumbeous of the tail. The white frontal patch has a convex posterior outline, and is abruptly defined against the blackish of the occiput and nape.All specimens from Canada and the Northeastern United States, to the interior of British America, are referrible to this variety; in the Yukon Territory specimens show a tendency tovar.obscurusof the northwest coast, having a narrower whitish frontal patch.Habits.The Canada Jay was procured at Fort Simpson by Mr. Kennicott in August, September, and December, and at the same point by Mr. Ross in March and April, in the years 1860 and 1861. It was found breedingin May at Anderson River Fort by Mr. MacFarlane. It was also procured at Big Island by Mr. Reid, at Nulato and Unalakleet by Mr. Dall, atSt.Michael’s by Colonel Bulkley, at Fort Kenai by Bischoff, and at Fort Rae by Mr. Clarke. From the memoranda of Mr. MacFarlane, we have valuable information in regard to the nesting and breeding habits of this species. May 24, at Fort Anderson, an Indian lad discovered a nest of this Jay. It was built in a tree, was composed of hay and feathers, and contained, with two young birds a few days old, an egg that was perfectly fresh. This bird, Mr. MacFarlane states, is tolerably numerous in that quarter. During the severe cold of winter it is not quite so common as at other seasons. It is by no means a difficult bird to shoot, as it will always venture into close proximity to man. Flesh or fish are certain to attract numbers of them, and they also cause great annoyance to the marten-hunter, by eating the bait placed in the traps used for capturing those animals. None of this species were observed on the Arctic coast, nor east of Horton River, Fort Anderson being the most northern point where Mr. MacFarlane saw any, in his journeys across the barren grounds.Other nests found in the same region were usually built in spruce-trees, on branches near the trunk, well concealed from view, and about ten feet from the ground. They were constructed of hay and feathers, supported underneath by a few willow sticks laid crosswise.Mr. Dall characterizes this species as a very bold and familiar bird, that will frequently fly down and steal away his dinner from some hungry dog, if he is not on the alert, or devour the fish hung up in camp by the Indians to dry. They breed very early, and occupy the same nest year after year. The nest is very large, and composed entirely of soft materials, moss, hair, and the like. On the 20th of April, Mr. Dall received a nest of this Jay containing four half-fledged young, so that they must lay in March. The bird was abundant everywhere on the Yukon River.These birds are known throughout the fur countries by the name of Whiskey-Jack, not from any supposed predilection for that beverage, but probably, as Mr. Kennicott has suggested, from a corruption of the Indian name for these birds, Wiss-ka-chon, which has been contorted into Whiskey-John and thence into Whiskey-Jack. Richardson observed these birds from Canada to the fur countries as far as latitude 69°. Throughout that region it is a constant attendant at the fur-posts and fishing-stations, and becomes so tame in the winter as to feed from the hand. Yet it is impatient of confinement, and soon pines away if deprived of its liberty. Its voice is said to be plaintive and squeaking, though it occasionally makes a low chattering. It hoards berries, pieces of meat, etc., in hollow trees, or between layers of bark, by which it is enabled to feed its young while the ground is still covered with snow.Dr. Newberry found this Jay as far to the south, in California, as the upper end of the Sacramento Valley, in latitude 40°. The fact that theisothermal line of this region passes south of Cincinnati, shows that climate and temperature do not regulate the range of this species. As observed in the summer months among the forests of Oregon, the Canada Jay appeared as a rather shy bird, exhibiting none of the familiarity and impudence exhibited in winter when made bold by hunger.Wilson mentions theSt.Lawrence as the southern boundary of this bird, a few only wintering in Northern New York and Vermont. But this is inexact. They are found resident throughout the year in a large part of Maine and in all the highlands of New Hampshire and Vermont. They are resident at Calais, where they breed in March at about latitude 45°, and descend in the winter to the southwest corner of Vermont, whence it is quite probable a few cross into Massachusetts, at Williamstown and Adams, though none have been detected, that I am aware. Wilson himself states that he was informed by a gentleman residing near Hudson,N. Y., that these birds have been observed in that neighborhood in the winter.Dr. Coues met with these birds in Labrador. The first he saw were in a dense spruce forest. These were very shy, alighting only on the tops of the tallest trees, and flying off with loud harsh screams on his approach. Subsequently, at Rigolet, he found them abundant and very familiar. One or more were always to be seen hopping unconcernedly in the garden-patches around the houses, not in the least disturbed by the near presence of man, and showing no signs of fear even when very closely approached. He describes their voice as a harsh, discordant scream.Mr. Edward Harris, of Moorestown,N. J., informed Mr. Audubon, that once, when fishing in a canoe in one of the lakes in the interior of Maine, these Jays were so fearless as to light on one end of his boat while he sat in the other, and helped themselves to his bait without taking any notice of him.A nest of the Canada Jay, found by Mr. Boardman nearSt.Stephen’s, New Brunswick, measures four and a half inches in diameter and three inches in height. The cavity is about three inches wide and two deep. The nest is woven above a rude platform of sticks and twigs crossed and interlaced, furnishing a roughly made hemispherical base and periphery. Upon this an inner and more artistic nest has been wrought, made of a soft felting of fine mosses closely impacted and lined with feathers. The nest contained three eggs.The egg of the Canada Jay measures 1.20 inches in length, by .82 of an inch in breadth. They are of an oblong-oval shape, and are more tapering at the smaller end than are most of the eggs of this family. The ground-color is of a light gray, with a slightly yellowish tinge over the entire egg, finely marked, more abundantly about the larger end, with points and blotches of slate-color and brown, and faint cloudings of an obscure lilac.Perisoreus canadensis,var.obscurus,Ridgway.ALASKAN GRAY JAY.Perisoreus canadensis,Cooper & Suckley, 216.—Dall & Bannister,Trans. Chicago Acad. I, 1869, 286 (Alaska).—Finsch,Abh. Nat.III, 1872, 40 (Alaska).—Cooper,Orn. Cal. I, 1870, 307.Sp. Char.(8,454 Shoalwater Bay,W. T., March 10, 1854; Dr. J. G. Cooper.) Above plumbeous-umber, inclining to grayish-plumbeous on wings and tail; shafts of the dorsal feathers conspicuously white. Whole crown and nape, above the lores and auriculars, sooty-black; separated from the brown of the back by a whitish tint. Forehead (narrowly), nasal tufts, lores, whole lateral and under side of head, with jugulum, pure white, rest of lower parts a duller and more brownish white. Wing, 5.50; tail, 5.30; culmen, .93; tarsus, 1.20.Young(5,904, Shoalwater Bay). Entirely plumbeous-brown, inclining to brownish-white beneath. Dorsal feathers with white shafts, and those of the forehead, crown, and nape, as well as the wing-coverts, with obsolete whitish borders.This form, as described above, seems to be peculiar to the northwest coast, reaching its extreme development in Washington Territory and Oregon. North of Sitka, and in the Yukon Territory, specimens incline toward thevar.canadensis, in broader frontal white, and purer plumbeous colors.Habits.Dr. Cooper met with this variety at the mouth of the Columbia River in March in small scattered flocks, industriously seeking insects and seeds among the spruce-trees, occasionally whistling in a loud melodious tone like that of the Cardinal Grosbeak. He also states that the notes of this bird differ much from the other Jays in being clear and musical, and they sometimes show a considerable variety of song.This Jay, Mr. Lord states, is so familiar and confiding, and so fond of being near the habitations of man, that the settlers never harm it. In the cold weather he has seen it hop by the fire, ruffle up its feathers and warm itself without the least fear, keeping a sharp lookout for crumbs, and looking so beseechingly with its glittering gray eyes, that no one could refuse such an appeal for a stray morsel. It winters in British Columbia and Vancouver Island.Perisoreus canadensis,var.capitalis,Baird.ROCKY MOUNTAIN GRAY JAY.Sp. Char.(61,084, Henry’s Fork, WyomingTerritory, F. V. Hayden.) Above fine light bluish-plumbeous, becoming much lighter on the anterior portion of the back; tertials, secondaries, wing-coverts, primaries, and tail-feathers passing into whitish terminally, on the latter forming quite broad and distinct tips. A nuchal patch of a slightly darker tint than the back, and separated from it by the hoary whitish of the anterior dorsal region. Whole of the head (except the nuchal patch), with the anterior lower parts, as far as the breast, pure white; rest of lower parts ashy-white, becoming gradually more ashy posteriorly. Wing, 5.80; tail, 6.00; culmen, 1.00.Young(18,440,Fort Benton, April 23, J. A. Mullan). Generally ashy-plumbeous, with a decided bluish cast to wings and tail; orbital region, lores, forehead, and nasal tufts blackish; crown, a broad space below the eye from the bill across the auriculars, with the middle of the abdomen, pale hoary-ashy. Wings and tail as in the adult.This race, very different from the two styles found to the westward and eastward of it, is peculiar to Rocky Mountain regions, and apparently only occurring south of the northern boundary of the United States. A very large series of specimens, brought in at various times from numerous localities, substantiate the constancy of the characters pointed out above.GenusPSILORHINUS,Rüppell.Psilorhinus,Rüppell,Mus. Senck.1837, 188. (Type,Pica morio,Wagler.)Char.Color very dull brown above. Bill very stout, compressed, without notch; higher than broad at the nostrils; culmen curved from the base. Nostrils rounded; the anterior extremity rounded off into the bill; not covered by bristles, but fully exposed. Tail rather longer than the wings, graduated; the lateral feather three fourths the longest; secondaries and tertials nearly as long as the primaries. Legs stout and short, not equal to the head, and little longer than the bill from base.

Illustration: Cyanocitta californicaCyanocitta californica.Specimens from CapeSt.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 ofC. californicain 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 tocalifornica, and not towoodhousei. The dorsal patch is very distinct.Illustration: Color plate 40PLATEXL.Illustration: Color plate 40 detail 11.Cyanocitta californica.♂Nev., 56642.Illustration: Color plate 40 detail 22.Cyanocitta californica.var.sumichrasti.♂Orizaba, 42129.Illustration: Color plate 40 detail 33.Cyanocitta woodhousii.♂Nev., 53647.Illustration: Color plate 40 detail 44.Cyanocitta floridana.♂Fla., 13734.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 betweensumichrastiandultramarina.Habits.The California Jay appears to be a Pacific coast species, occurring from the Columbia River southward to CapeSt.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 coloredwoodhousei.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 thecorrectness 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 callswoit, woit-woit, with an occasional recognition note oftwee-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 CapeSt.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 ofC. 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 fromcalifornica, 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 extremelyrestless, 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 ofSwains.!),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 sordidavar.arizonæ,Ridgway,Rep. U. S. Geol. Expl. 40th Par.Illustration: Color plate 41PLATEXLI.Illustration: Color plate 41 detail 11.Cyanocitta sordida. Orizaba, 38209.Illustration: Color plate 41 detail 22.Cyanocitta sordida.var.arizonæ.♂Ariz., 18279.Illustration: Color plate 41 detail 33.Perisoreus canadensis.♂Nova Scotia, 26940.Illustration: Color plate 41 detail 44.Perisoreus canadensis.var.capitalis.♂Colorado, 51642.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), thelower 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 thevar.sordidaof 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 ofAudubon).—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 theC. 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 theP. 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 theC. californica. It is found in the valley of the Rio Grande, and thence southward and eastward in the northern provinces ofMexico. 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 callsC. ultramarinain company withCyanura coronataandCyanocitta nana, “californica” (Sumichrasti), andsordida, 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. Thesordidais also found on the plateau.GenusXANTHOURA,Bonap.Xanthoura,Bonaparte,Consp. Av.1850. (Type, “Corvus peruvianus,Gm.”)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.Illustration: Xanthoura luxuosaXanthoura luxuosa.4052The genusXanthourais 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 hypothesisof 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-belliedluxuosaof the Rio Grande, we come to the yellow-belliedguatemalensis; 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. Inincasagain 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 toCorvus 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-belliedguatemalensisis gradual as we proceed south; and the latter, and perhaps even theincas, can only be considered as fellow races of a common original species.Illustration: Xanthoura luxuosaXanthoura luxuosa.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, byM.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 ofPica 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 asPajaro 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 ofVerde detocaandSonaja. 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 theTierra 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 whowas 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 wasPepe 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.GenusPERISOREUS,Bonap.Perisoreus,Bonap.Saggio di unadist. 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; theP. infaustushaving 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, WashingtonTerritory, 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.Illustration: Perisoreus canadensisPerisoreus canadensis.18440   8452In the more slender form, longer and narrower bill, and paler tints with a predominance of the light colors, of thevar.capitalis, compared with the typical, or standard,var.canadensis, we see the peculiar impression of the middle region; while in thevar.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.Corvus canadensis,Linn.Syst. Nat. I, 1766, 158.—Forster,Phil. Trans. LXII, 1772, 382.—Wilson,Am. Orn. III, 1811, 33,pl. xxi.—Bon.Obs.1824,No.42.—Aud.Orn. Biog. II, 1834, 53;V, 1839, 208,pl. cvii.Garrulus canadensis,Bon.(Saggio, 1831?)Syn.1828, 58.—Swainson,F. Bor.-Am. II, 1831, 295.—Nuttall,Man. I, 1832, 232.—Aud.Syn.1839, 155.—Ib.Birds Am. IV, 1842, 121,pl. ccxxxiv.Dysornithia canadensis,Swainson,F. Bor.-Am. II, 1831, Appendix.Perisoreus canadensis,Bon.List, 1838.—Ib.Conspectus, 1850, 375.—Cab.Mus. Hein.1851, 219.—Newberry,Rep. P. R. R. Surv. VI,IV, 1857, 85.—Baird,Birds N. Am.1858, 590.—Coues,P. A. N. S.1861, 226.—Samuels, 366.Garrulus fuscus,Vieillot,Nouv. Dict. XII, 1817, 479.Pica nuchalis,Wagler,Syst. Av.1827 (PicaNo.14).Garrulus trachyrrhynchus,Swainson,F. Bor.-Am. II, 1831, 296,pl. lv(young). “Coracias mexicanus,Temminck,”Gray.Illustration: Perisoreus canadensisPerisoreus canadensis.Sp. Char.Tail graduated; lateral feathers about one inch shortest. Wings a little shorter than the tail. Head and neck and forepart of breast white. A rather sooty plumbeous nuchal patch, becoming darker behind, from the middle of the cap to the back, from which it is separated by an interrupted whitish collar. Rest of upper parts dark ashy-plumbeous; the outer primaries margined, the secondaries, tertials, and tail-feathers obscurely tipped with white. Beneath smoky-gray. Crissum whitish. Bill and feet black. Length, 10.70; wing, 5.75; tail, 6.00; tarsus, 1.40.Hab.Eastern Northern America into the northern part of United States; British America to Upper Yukon.The young of this species are everywhere of a dull sooty-plumbeous, lighter on the middle of the belly, and more bluish-plumbeous on the wings and tail. With increasing age the region about the base of the bill whitens.There is a decided bluish cast to the plumbeous of the tail. The white frontal patch has a convex posterior outline, and is abruptly defined against the blackish of the occiput and nape.All specimens from Canada and the Northeastern United States, to the interior of British America, are referrible to this variety; in the Yukon Territory specimens show a tendency tovar.obscurusof the northwest coast, having a narrower whitish frontal patch.Habits.The Canada Jay was procured at Fort Simpson by Mr. Kennicott in August, September, and December, and at the same point by Mr. Ross in March and April, in the years 1860 and 1861. It was found breedingin May at Anderson River Fort by Mr. MacFarlane. It was also procured at Big Island by Mr. Reid, at Nulato and Unalakleet by Mr. Dall, atSt.Michael’s by Colonel Bulkley, at Fort Kenai by Bischoff, and at Fort Rae by Mr. Clarke. From the memoranda of Mr. MacFarlane, we have valuable information in regard to the nesting and breeding habits of this species. May 24, at Fort Anderson, an Indian lad discovered a nest of this Jay. It was built in a tree, was composed of hay and feathers, and contained, with two young birds a few days old, an egg that was perfectly fresh. This bird, Mr. MacFarlane states, is tolerably numerous in that quarter. During the severe cold of winter it is not quite so common as at other seasons. It is by no means a difficult bird to shoot, as it will always venture into close proximity to man. Flesh or fish are certain to attract numbers of them, and they also cause great annoyance to the marten-hunter, by eating the bait placed in the traps used for capturing those animals. None of this species were observed on the Arctic coast, nor east of Horton River, Fort Anderson being the most northern point where Mr. MacFarlane saw any, in his journeys across the barren grounds.Other nests found in the same region were usually built in spruce-trees, on branches near the trunk, well concealed from view, and about ten feet from the ground. They were constructed of hay and feathers, supported underneath by a few willow sticks laid crosswise.Mr. Dall characterizes this species as a very bold and familiar bird, that will frequently fly down and steal away his dinner from some hungry dog, if he is not on the alert, or devour the fish hung up in camp by the Indians to dry. They breed very early, and occupy the same nest year after year. The nest is very large, and composed entirely of soft materials, moss, hair, and the like. On the 20th of April, Mr. Dall received a nest of this Jay containing four half-fledged young, so that they must lay in March. The bird was abundant everywhere on the Yukon River.These birds are known throughout the fur countries by the name of Whiskey-Jack, not from any supposed predilection for that beverage, but probably, as Mr. Kennicott has suggested, from a corruption of the Indian name for these birds, Wiss-ka-chon, which has been contorted into Whiskey-John and thence into Whiskey-Jack. Richardson observed these birds from Canada to the fur countries as far as latitude 69°. Throughout that region it is a constant attendant at the fur-posts and fishing-stations, and becomes so tame in the winter as to feed from the hand. Yet it is impatient of confinement, and soon pines away if deprived of its liberty. Its voice is said to be plaintive and squeaking, though it occasionally makes a low chattering. It hoards berries, pieces of meat, etc., in hollow trees, or between layers of bark, by which it is enabled to feed its young while the ground is still covered with snow.Dr. Newberry found this Jay as far to the south, in California, as the upper end of the Sacramento Valley, in latitude 40°. The fact that theisothermal line of this region passes south of Cincinnati, shows that climate and temperature do not regulate the range of this species. As observed in the summer months among the forests of Oregon, the Canada Jay appeared as a rather shy bird, exhibiting none of the familiarity and impudence exhibited in winter when made bold by hunger.Wilson mentions theSt.Lawrence as the southern boundary of this bird, a few only wintering in Northern New York and Vermont. But this is inexact. They are found resident throughout the year in a large part of Maine and in all the highlands of New Hampshire and Vermont. They are resident at Calais, where they breed in March at about latitude 45°, and descend in the winter to the southwest corner of Vermont, whence it is quite probable a few cross into Massachusetts, at Williamstown and Adams, though none have been detected, that I am aware. Wilson himself states that he was informed by a gentleman residing near Hudson,N. Y., that these birds have been observed in that neighborhood in the winter.Dr. Coues met with these birds in Labrador. The first he saw were in a dense spruce forest. These were very shy, alighting only on the tops of the tallest trees, and flying off with loud harsh screams on his approach. Subsequently, at Rigolet, he found them abundant and very familiar. One or more were always to be seen hopping unconcernedly in the garden-patches around the houses, not in the least disturbed by the near presence of man, and showing no signs of fear even when very closely approached. He describes their voice as a harsh, discordant scream.Mr. Edward Harris, of Moorestown,N. J., informed Mr. Audubon, that once, when fishing in a canoe in one of the lakes in the interior of Maine, these Jays were so fearless as to light on one end of his boat while he sat in the other, and helped themselves to his bait without taking any notice of him.A nest of the Canada Jay, found by Mr. Boardman nearSt.Stephen’s, New Brunswick, measures four and a half inches in diameter and three inches in height. The cavity is about three inches wide and two deep. The nest is woven above a rude platform of sticks and twigs crossed and interlaced, furnishing a roughly made hemispherical base and periphery. Upon this an inner and more artistic nest has been wrought, made of a soft felting of fine mosses closely impacted and lined with feathers. The nest contained three eggs.The egg of the Canada Jay measures 1.20 inches in length, by .82 of an inch in breadth. They are of an oblong-oval shape, and are more tapering at the smaller end than are most of the eggs of this family. The ground-color is of a light gray, with a slightly yellowish tinge over the entire egg, finely marked, more abundantly about the larger end, with points and blotches of slate-color and brown, and faint cloudings of an obscure lilac.Perisoreus canadensis,var.obscurus,Ridgway.ALASKAN GRAY JAY.Perisoreus canadensis,Cooper & Suckley, 216.—Dall & Bannister,Trans. Chicago Acad. I, 1869, 286 (Alaska).—Finsch,Abh. Nat.III, 1872, 40 (Alaska).—Cooper,Orn. Cal. I, 1870, 307.Sp. Char.(8,454 Shoalwater Bay,W. T., March 10, 1854; Dr. J. G. Cooper.) Above plumbeous-umber, inclining to grayish-plumbeous on wings and tail; shafts of the dorsal feathers conspicuously white. Whole crown and nape, above the lores and auriculars, sooty-black; separated from the brown of the back by a whitish tint. Forehead (narrowly), nasal tufts, lores, whole lateral and under side of head, with jugulum, pure white, rest of lower parts a duller and more brownish white. Wing, 5.50; tail, 5.30; culmen, .93; tarsus, 1.20.Young(5,904, Shoalwater Bay). Entirely plumbeous-brown, inclining to brownish-white beneath. Dorsal feathers with white shafts, and those of the forehead, crown, and nape, as well as the wing-coverts, with obsolete whitish borders.This form, as described above, seems to be peculiar to the northwest coast, reaching its extreme development in Washington Territory and Oregon. North of Sitka, and in the Yukon Territory, specimens incline toward thevar.canadensis, in broader frontal white, and purer plumbeous colors.Habits.Dr. Cooper met with this variety at the mouth of the Columbia River in March in small scattered flocks, industriously seeking insects and seeds among the spruce-trees, occasionally whistling in a loud melodious tone like that of the Cardinal Grosbeak. He also states that the notes of this bird differ much from the other Jays in being clear and musical, and they sometimes show a considerable variety of song.This Jay, Mr. Lord states, is so familiar and confiding, and so fond of being near the habitations of man, that the settlers never harm it. In the cold weather he has seen it hop by the fire, ruffle up its feathers and warm itself without the least fear, keeping a sharp lookout for crumbs, and looking so beseechingly with its glittering gray eyes, that no one could refuse such an appeal for a stray morsel. It winters in British Columbia and Vancouver Island.Perisoreus canadensis,var.capitalis,Baird.ROCKY MOUNTAIN GRAY JAY.Sp. Char.(61,084, Henry’s Fork, WyomingTerritory, F. V. Hayden.) Above fine light bluish-plumbeous, becoming much lighter on the anterior portion of the back; tertials, secondaries, wing-coverts, primaries, and tail-feathers passing into whitish terminally, on the latter forming quite broad and distinct tips. A nuchal patch of a slightly darker tint than the back, and separated from it by the hoary whitish of the anterior dorsal region. Whole of the head (except the nuchal patch), with the anterior lower parts, as far as the breast, pure white; rest of lower parts ashy-white, becoming gradually more ashy posteriorly. Wing, 5.80; tail, 6.00; culmen, 1.00.Young(18,440,Fort Benton, April 23, J. A. Mullan). Generally ashy-plumbeous, with a decided bluish cast to wings and tail; orbital region, lores, forehead, and nasal tufts blackish; crown, a broad space below the eye from the bill across the auriculars, with the middle of the abdomen, pale hoary-ashy. Wings and tail as in the adult.This race, very different from the two styles found to the westward and eastward of it, is peculiar to Rocky Mountain regions, and apparently only occurring south of the northern boundary of the United States. A very large series of specimens, brought in at various times from numerous localities, substantiate the constancy of the characters pointed out above.GenusPSILORHINUS,Rüppell.Psilorhinus,Rüppell,Mus. Senck.1837, 188. (Type,Pica morio,Wagler.)Char.Color very dull brown above. Bill very stout, compressed, without notch; higher than broad at the nostrils; culmen curved from the base. Nostrils rounded; the anterior extremity rounded off into the bill; not covered by bristles, but fully exposed. Tail rather longer than the wings, graduated; the lateral feather three fourths the longest; secondaries and tertials nearly as long as the primaries. Legs stout and short, not equal to the head, and little longer than the bill from base.

Illustration: Cyanocitta californicaCyanocitta californica.

Cyanocitta californica.

Specimens from CapeSt.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 ofC. californicain 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 tocalifornica, and not towoodhousei. The dorsal patch is very distinct.

Illustration: Color plate 40PLATEXL.

PLATEXL.

PLATEXL.

Illustration: Color plate 40 detail 11.Cyanocitta californica.♂Nev., 56642.

1.Cyanocitta californica.♂Nev., 56642.

1.Cyanocitta californica.♂Nev., 56642.

Illustration: Color plate 40 detail 22.Cyanocitta californica.var.sumichrasti.♂Orizaba, 42129.

2.Cyanocitta californica.var.sumichrasti.♂Orizaba, 42129.

2.Cyanocitta californica.var.sumichrasti.♂Orizaba, 42129.

Illustration: Color plate 40 detail 33.Cyanocitta woodhousii.♂Nev., 53647.

3.Cyanocitta woodhousii.♂Nev., 53647.

3.Cyanocitta woodhousii.♂Nev., 53647.

Illustration: Color plate 40 detail 44.Cyanocitta floridana.♂Fla., 13734.

4.Cyanocitta floridana.♂Fla., 13734.

4.Cyanocitta floridana.♂Fla., 13734.

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 betweensumichrastiandultramarina.

Habits.The California Jay appears to be a Pacific coast species, occurring from the Columbia River southward to CapeSt.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 coloredwoodhousei.

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 thecorrectness 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 callswoit, woit-woit, with an occasional recognition note oftwee-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 CapeSt.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 ofC. 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 fromcalifornica, 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 extremelyrestless, 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 ofSwains.!),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 sordidavar.arizonæ,Ridgway,Rep. U. S. Geol. Expl. 40th Par.

Illustration: Color plate 41PLATEXLI.

PLATEXLI.

PLATEXLI.

Illustration: Color plate 41 detail 11.Cyanocitta sordida. Orizaba, 38209.

1.Cyanocitta sordida. Orizaba, 38209.

1.Cyanocitta sordida. Orizaba, 38209.

Illustration: Color plate 41 detail 22.Cyanocitta sordida.var.arizonæ.♂Ariz., 18279.

2.Cyanocitta sordida.var.arizonæ.♂Ariz., 18279.

2.Cyanocitta sordida.var.arizonæ.♂Ariz., 18279.

Illustration: Color plate 41 detail 33.Perisoreus canadensis.♂Nova Scotia, 26940.

3.Perisoreus canadensis.♂Nova Scotia, 26940.

3.Perisoreus canadensis.♂Nova Scotia, 26940.

Illustration: Color plate 41 detail 44.Perisoreus canadensis.var.capitalis.♂Colorado, 51642.

4.Perisoreus canadensis.var.capitalis.♂Colorado, 51642.

4.Perisoreus canadensis.var.capitalis.♂Colorado, 51642.

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), thelower 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 thevar.sordidaof 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 ofAudubon).—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 theC. 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 theP. 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 theC. californica. It is found in the valley of the Rio Grande, and thence southward and eastward in the northern provinces ofMexico. 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 callsC. ultramarinain company withCyanura coronataandCyanocitta nana, “californica” (Sumichrasti), andsordida, 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. Thesordidais also found on the plateau.

GenusXANTHOURA,Bonap.

Xanthoura,Bonaparte,Consp. Av.1850. (Type, “Corvus peruvianus,Gm.”)

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.

Illustration: Xanthoura luxuosaXanthoura luxuosa.4052

Xanthoura luxuosa.4052

The genusXanthourais 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 hypothesisof 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-belliedluxuosaof the Rio Grande, we come to the yellow-belliedguatemalensis; 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. Inincasagain 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 toCorvus 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-belliedguatemalensisis gradual as we proceed south; and the latter, and perhaps even theincas, can only be considered as fellow races of a common original species.

Illustration: Xanthoura luxuosaXanthoura luxuosa.

Xanthoura luxuosa.

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, byM.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 ofPica 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 asPajaro 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 ofVerde detocaandSonaja. 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 theTierra 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 whowas 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 wasPepe 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.

GenusPERISOREUS,Bonap.

Perisoreus,Bonap.Saggio di unadist. 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; theP. infaustushaving 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, WashingtonTerritory, 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.

Illustration: Perisoreus canadensisPerisoreus canadensis.18440   8452

Perisoreus canadensis.18440   8452

In the more slender form, longer and narrower bill, and paler tints with a predominance of the light colors, of thevar.capitalis, compared with the typical, or standard,var.canadensis, we see the peculiar impression of the middle region; while in thevar.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.

Corvus canadensis,Linn.Syst. Nat. I, 1766, 158.—Forster,Phil. Trans. LXII, 1772, 382.—Wilson,Am. Orn. III, 1811, 33,pl. xxi.—Bon.Obs.1824,No.42.—Aud.Orn. Biog. II, 1834, 53;V, 1839, 208,pl. cvii.Garrulus canadensis,Bon.(Saggio, 1831?)Syn.1828, 58.—Swainson,F. Bor.-Am. II, 1831, 295.—Nuttall,Man. I, 1832, 232.—Aud.Syn.1839, 155.—Ib.Birds Am. IV, 1842, 121,pl. ccxxxiv.Dysornithia canadensis,Swainson,F. Bor.-Am. II, 1831, Appendix.Perisoreus canadensis,Bon.List, 1838.—Ib.Conspectus, 1850, 375.—Cab.Mus. Hein.1851, 219.—Newberry,Rep. P. R. R. Surv. VI,IV, 1857, 85.—Baird,Birds N. Am.1858, 590.—Coues,P. A. N. S.1861, 226.—Samuels, 366.Garrulus fuscus,Vieillot,Nouv. Dict. XII, 1817, 479.Pica nuchalis,Wagler,Syst. Av.1827 (PicaNo.14).Garrulus trachyrrhynchus,Swainson,F. Bor.-Am. II, 1831, 296,pl. lv(young). “Coracias mexicanus,Temminck,”Gray.

Illustration: Perisoreus canadensisPerisoreus canadensis.

Perisoreus canadensis.

Sp. Char.Tail graduated; lateral feathers about one inch shortest. Wings a little shorter than the tail. Head and neck and forepart of breast white. A rather sooty plumbeous nuchal patch, becoming darker behind, from the middle of the cap to the back, from which it is separated by an interrupted whitish collar. Rest of upper parts dark ashy-plumbeous; the outer primaries margined, the secondaries, tertials, and tail-feathers obscurely tipped with white. Beneath smoky-gray. Crissum whitish. Bill and feet black. Length, 10.70; wing, 5.75; tail, 6.00; tarsus, 1.40.

Hab.Eastern Northern America into the northern part of United States; British America to Upper Yukon.

The young of this species are everywhere of a dull sooty-plumbeous, lighter on the middle of the belly, and more bluish-plumbeous on the wings and tail. With increasing age the region about the base of the bill whitens.

There is a decided bluish cast to the plumbeous of the tail. The white frontal patch has a convex posterior outline, and is abruptly defined against the blackish of the occiput and nape.

All specimens from Canada and the Northeastern United States, to the interior of British America, are referrible to this variety; in the Yukon Territory specimens show a tendency tovar.obscurusof the northwest coast, having a narrower whitish frontal patch.

Habits.The Canada Jay was procured at Fort Simpson by Mr. Kennicott in August, September, and December, and at the same point by Mr. Ross in March and April, in the years 1860 and 1861. It was found breedingin May at Anderson River Fort by Mr. MacFarlane. It was also procured at Big Island by Mr. Reid, at Nulato and Unalakleet by Mr. Dall, atSt.Michael’s by Colonel Bulkley, at Fort Kenai by Bischoff, and at Fort Rae by Mr. Clarke. From the memoranda of Mr. MacFarlane, we have valuable information in regard to the nesting and breeding habits of this species. May 24, at Fort Anderson, an Indian lad discovered a nest of this Jay. It was built in a tree, was composed of hay and feathers, and contained, with two young birds a few days old, an egg that was perfectly fresh. This bird, Mr. MacFarlane states, is tolerably numerous in that quarter. During the severe cold of winter it is not quite so common as at other seasons. It is by no means a difficult bird to shoot, as it will always venture into close proximity to man. Flesh or fish are certain to attract numbers of them, and they also cause great annoyance to the marten-hunter, by eating the bait placed in the traps used for capturing those animals. None of this species were observed on the Arctic coast, nor east of Horton River, Fort Anderson being the most northern point where Mr. MacFarlane saw any, in his journeys across the barren grounds.

Other nests found in the same region were usually built in spruce-trees, on branches near the trunk, well concealed from view, and about ten feet from the ground. They were constructed of hay and feathers, supported underneath by a few willow sticks laid crosswise.

Mr. Dall characterizes this species as a very bold and familiar bird, that will frequently fly down and steal away his dinner from some hungry dog, if he is not on the alert, or devour the fish hung up in camp by the Indians to dry. They breed very early, and occupy the same nest year after year. The nest is very large, and composed entirely of soft materials, moss, hair, and the like. On the 20th of April, Mr. Dall received a nest of this Jay containing four half-fledged young, so that they must lay in March. The bird was abundant everywhere on the Yukon River.

These birds are known throughout the fur countries by the name of Whiskey-Jack, not from any supposed predilection for that beverage, but probably, as Mr. Kennicott has suggested, from a corruption of the Indian name for these birds, Wiss-ka-chon, which has been contorted into Whiskey-John and thence into Whiskey-Jack. Richardson observed these birds from Canada to the fur countries as far as latitude 69°. Throughout that region it is a constant attendant at the fur-posts and fishing-stations, and becomes so tame in the winter as to feed from the hand. Yet it is impatient of confinement, and soon pines away if deprived of its liberty. Its voice is said to be plaintive and squeaking, though it occasionally makes a low chattering. It hoards berries, pieces of meat, etc., in hollow trees, or between layers of bark, by which it is enabled to feed its young while the ground is still covered with snow.

Dr. Newberry found this Jay as far to the south, in California, as the upper end of the Sacramento Valley, in latitude 40°. The fact that theisothermal line of this region passes south of Cincinnati, shows that climate and temperature do not regulate the range of this species. As observed in the summer months among the forests of Oregon, the Canada Jay appeared as a rather shy bird, exhibiting none of the familiarity and impudence exhibited in winter when made bold by hunger.

Wilson mentions theSt.Lawrence as the southern boundary of this bird, a few only wintering in Northern New York and Vermont. But this is inexact. They are found resident throughout the year in a large part of Maine and in all the highlands of New Hampshire and Vermont. They are resident at Calais, where they breed in March at about latitude 45°, and descend in the winter to the southwest corner of Vermont, whence it is quite probable a few cross into Massachusetts, at Williamstown and Adams, though none have been detected, that I am aware. Wilson himself states that he was informed by a gentleman residing near Hudson,N. Y., that these birds have been observed in that neighborhood in the winter.

Dr. Coues met with these birds in Labrador. The first he saw were in a dense spruce forest. These were very shy, alighting only on the tops of the tallest trees, and flying off with loud harsh screams on his approach. Subsequently, at Rigolet, he found them abundant and very familiar. One or more were always to be seen hopping unconcernedly in the garden-patches around the houses, not in the least disturbed by the near presence of man, and showing no signs of fear even when very closely approached. He describes their voice as a harsh, discordant scream.

Mr. Edward Harris, of Moorestown,N. J., informed Mr. Audubon, that once, when fishing in a canoe in one of the lakes in the interior of Maine, these Jays were so fearless as to light on one end of his boat while he sat in the other, and helped themselves to his bait without taking any notice of him.

A nest of the Canada Jay, found by Mr. Boardman nearSt.Stephen’s, New Brunswick, measures four and a half inches in diameter and three inches in height. The cavity is about three inches wide and two deep. The nest is woven above a rude platform of sticks and twigs crossed and interlaced, furnishing a roughly made hemispherical base and periphery. Upon this an inner and more artistic nest has been wrought, made of a soft felting of fine mosses closely impacted and lined with feathers. The nest contained three eggs.

The egg of the Canada Jay measures 1.20 inches in length, by .82 of an inch in breadth. They are of an oblong-oval shape, and are more tapering at the smaller end than are most of the eggs of this family. The ground-color is of a light gray, with a slightly yellowish tinge over the entire egg, finely marked, more abundantly about the larger end, with points and blotches of slate-color and brown, and faint cloudings of an obscure lilac.

Perisoreus canadensis,var.obscurus,Ridgway.

ALASKAN GRAY JAY.

Perisoreus canadensis,Cooper & Suckley, 216.—Dall & Bannister,Trans. Chicago Acad. I, 1869, 286 (Alaska).—Finsch,Abh. Nat.III, 1872, 40 (Alaska).—Cooper,Orn. Cal. I, 1870, 307.

Sp. Char.(8,454 Shoalwater Bay,W. T., March 10, 1854; Dr. J. G. Cooper.) Above plumbeous-umber, inclining to grayish-plumbeous on wings and tail; shafts of the dorsal feathers conspicuously white. Whole crown and nape, above the lores and auriculars, sooty-black; separated from the brown of the back by a whitish tint. Forehead (narrowly), nasal tufts, lores, whole lateral and under side of head, with jugulum, pure white, rest of lower parts a duller and more brownish white. Wing, 5.50; tail, 5.30; culmen, .93; tarsus, 1.20.Young(5,904, Shoalwater Bay). Entirely plumbeous-brown, inclining to brownish-white beneath. Dorsal feathers with white shafts, and those of the forehead, crown, and nape, as well as the wing-coverts, with obsolete whitish borders.

This form, as described above, seems to be peculiar to the northwest coast, reaching its extreme development in Washington Territory and Oregon. North of Sitka, and in the Yukon Territory, specimens incline toward thevar.canadensis, in broader frontal white, and purer plumbeous colors.

Habits.Dr. Cooper met with this variety at the mouth of the Columbia River in March in small scattered flocks, industriously seeking insects and seeds among the spruce-trees, occasionally whistling in a loud melodious tone like that of the Cardinal Grosbeak. He also states that the notes of this bird differ much from the other Jays in being clear and musical, and they sometimes show a considerable variety of song.

This Jay, Mr. Lord states, is so familiar and confiding, and so fond of being near the habitations of man, that the settlers never harm it. In the cold weather he has seen it hop by the fire, ruffle up its feathers and warm itself without the least fear, keeping a sharp lookout for crumbs, and looking so beseechingly with its glittering gray eyes, that no one could refuse such an appeal for a stray morsel. It winters in British Columbia and Vancouver Island.

Perisoreus canadensis,var.capitalis,Baird.

ROCKY MOUNTAIN GRAY JAY.

Sp. Char.(61,084, Henry’s Fork, WyomingTerritory, F. V. Hayden.) Above fine light bluish-plumbeous, becoming much lighter on the anterior portion of the back; tertials, secondaries, wing-coverts, primaries, and tail-feathers passing into whitish terminally, on the latter forming quite broad and distinct tips. A nuchal patch of a slightly darker tint than the back, and separated from it by the hoary whitish of the anterior dorsal region. Whole of the head (except the nuchal patch), with the anterior lower parts, as far as the breast, pure white; rest of lower parts ashy-white, becoming gradually more ashy posteriorly. Wing, 5.80; tail, 6.00; culmen, 1.00.Young(18,440,Fort Benton, April 23, J. A. Mullan). Generally ashy-plumbeous, with a decided bluish cast to wings and tail; orbital region, lores, forehead, and nasal tufts blackish; crown, a broad space below the eye from the bill across the auriculars, with the middle of the abdomen, pale hoary-ashy. Wings and tail as in the adult.

This race, very different from the two styles found to the westward and eastward of it, is peculiar to Rocky Mountain regions, and apparently only occurring south of the northern boundary of the United States. A very large series of specimens, brought in at various times from numerous localities, substantiate the constancy of the characters pointed out above.

GenusPSILORHINUS,Rüppell.

Psilorhinus,Rüppell,Mus. Senck.1837, 188. (Type,Pica morio,Wagler.)

Char.Color very dull brown above. Bill very stout, compressed, without notch; higher than broad at the nostrils; culmen curved from the base. Nostrils rounded; the anterior extremity rounded off into the bill; not covered by bristles, but fully exposed. Tail rather longer than the wings, graduated; the lateral feather three fourths the longest; secondaries and tertials nearly as long as the primaries. Legs stout and short, not equal to the head, and little longer than the bill from base.

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