Other birds do not at all like the jay, for it is very fond of visiting their nests and stealing the eggs. It will carry off young birds, too, and devour them, and many a young partridge and pheasant falls victim to its appetite. But it also eats caterpillars, moths, beetles, and other insects, as well as fruit and berries; while sometimes it will visit a kitchen garden early in the morning, and feast heartily on the young peas.
Our common Eastern American jay is light blue, with pretty white markings; while in the far West and in the tropics are many kinds which are rich dark blue or green; the European jay, however, is more varied. In general color it is light reddish brown. On either wing is a patch of azure blue banded with black, while the head is decorated with a crest of gray feathers, with black spots, which can be raised and lowered at will. Nearly all jays have tall crests. The quill-feathers of the wings and tail are black.
The Magpie
Another famous member of this family is the magpie, which occurs in both Europe and America, and may be recognized by its glossy black and white plumage, its long tail, and its curious dipping flight. It is found in most parts of the British Isles, but never wanders far away from the shelter of large woods, where it knows that it is much safer from the attacks of hawks than in the open country.
The magpie is as mischievous out of doors as the jay, and as mischievous indoors as the jackdaw; so that it cannot be said to bear a very good character. But at any rate it makes a very amusing little pet, even if it does steal any small object that it can carry away, and hide it in some hoard of its own. But with a little careful instruction it soon learns to talk quite well. In Europe, consequently, many tame magpies are to be seen; but not so often in the United States.
The nest of the magpie cannot be mistaken for that of any other bird, for although it is made of sticks, like that of the jackdaw and the jay, it is always domed above, and has the entrance at the side. It is generally situated in a thorn or a pine tree, although now and then the birds will build in a low bush quite close to the ground. There are generally from five to seven eggs, which are bluish white in color, blotched and dotted with brown.
Birds of Paradise
Next in order to the crows, jays, and magpies come these. They include some of the most beautiful of all the feathered race. They are nearly all found in New Guinea and the Papuan islands, and there are altogether about fifty different kinds.
One of the most beautiful is the king bird of paradise, which it is very difficult to describe in words. The upper part of the body is rich chestnut, with a bloom of purple, the lower part pure white, and across the breast runs a band of golden green, which deepens into blackish brown, while the upper part of the head and neck is pale straw-color. Most exquisite of all, however, are the great masses of long, slender, drooping plumes, which spring from either side of the body under the wings. These plumes are nearly two feet long, and are golden yellow, darkening toward the tips into pale brown. This exquisite plumage is only found in the cock bird, the hen being of a dull brown color all over, without any plumes at all; and the birds have now become extremely scarce because killed so incessantly for the cruel purpose of getting their feathers to put on hats!
Very little is known about the habits of birds of paradise, for few people ever have the opportunity of seeing them in their native forests, and they are almost unknown in zoölogical gardens because they usually die almost immediately when placed in captivity in a strange country.