Part 47

Of all our birds none is more pert and saucy than the jay. His voice is loud, and he likes to hear it. He is the trumpeter in the bird band. He has a varied note, and can mock the songs of other birds. He chatters like a duck; he screams like an angry catbird; he whistles; he laughs; and then he goes into the shade, and talks to his mate in a soft musical tone.

He seems to be vain of his fine clothes. Sometimes he stands on a branch, and makes such wild noises that all the birds in the wood fly to see what is the matter. Then, when he has a number of birds to gaze at him, he bows, nods, jerks, flirts, whirls, and makes all manner of the queerest motions. He seems to be giving some sort of a show.

One of the jay’s family names is “the gabbler.” It is said that, like the crow and some other birds, he is a weather prophet, and most noisy before a rain-storm.

The jay will eat almost any kind of food. He eats the eggs and young of smaller birds. He eats chestnuts, acorns, corn, cherries, insects. When very hungry, he will take a small potato, or go to the barn for corn and oats.

Of all the bird partners of the plant in seed-carrying, the jay is chief. One man, who studied this bird very carefully, said, “The jays are able, in a few years’ time, to replant all our waste lands.” No bird is more useful in carrying about nuts and hard seeds.

The jay is especially the bird of North America. He is not a very great traveller. Usually each pair lives alone, and then with their young brood. But sometimes in the autumn forty or fifty will go together to look for acorns.

The jay likes to build in a quiet wood, near a stream. He builds a large nest in a tree, and watches over it, but does not often go very near it. The mother jay lays five eggs of olive color, with brown spots. When the young birds come from the shell, both parents take great care of them.

One day I saw in a wood five new-fledged jays, sitting on a branch. They were not at all afraid of me. But the old birds came near, and seemed in such distress at seeing me, that I went away. A few weeks after I saw the whole family, carrying stores of chestnuts, acorns, and seeds to hide, for they are given to laying up a hoard of food.

The jay is the great enemy of the owl. As soon as he finds an owl hidden in the shade, he calls all the other birds to the battle. Then, headed by the jay, they scold and scream, and fly at the owl, until they drive him off.

He quarrels also with the small sparrow-hawk. But in that quarrel poor Mr. Jay sometimes is killed. When he fights the hawk, he calls other jays to his help. If one of them is killed by the hawk, they all give loud, wild cries. Then they fly off and, hidden in the wood, complain of their disaster.

LESSON XXXVIII.

THE BIRDS IN THE HOUSE.

As so many of you have cage birds, I think you will like to hear a little about the kinds of birds that most often live in cages. I will tell you of only the two most common kinds of pet birds,--the canary and the parrot.

As the parrot is the larger bird and of more ancient fame, we will speak of him first. Parrots have been favorite cage birds for many hundred years. They are notable for size, splendor of plumage, docility, long life, and power of learning to speak.

Like the woodpecker, the parrot belongs to the division of climbing birds. The feet of climbing birds have two toes turned forward, and two turned backward.

The parrot family is a group of large and splendid birds. You will know even the smaller members of it by their bills. The bills are high and thick, and have the upper part much curved and longer than the under part. This bill is useful in aiding the birds in climbing, and in holding fast to the branches of trees. It is just the right kind of bill for eating fruit, which forms the chief food of the parrot in its wild state.

The tongue of the parrot is short, thick, and fleshy. The wings and tail are long. The plumage is gay.

To the parrot family belong the parrakeets, cockatoos, macaws, and lories. These are all birds of hot countries.

Nothing can exceed the splendor of the plumage of these birds. Red, lemon, green, scarlet, blue, white, and a mixture of these colors, will be found upon them. Many of them have brilliant crests, and many of them long gay tail feathers.

The head and bill of the parrot are large. While their bill tells us what kind of food they live on, and their feet show that they can climb, their long strong wings show that they are birds of flight.

Parrots are social birds. They live in large flocks. They make their nests in hollow trees, as woodpeckers do. In their native homes they are much like woodpeckers in some of their ways. But they eat fruit, not insects.

The natural voice of the parrot is a loud, harsh call. Parrots can learn to speak only when they are carefully taught. Not every kind of parrot can learn even when taught. The common short-tailed, red and green parrot makes the best talker. Some of them are very amusing.

Parrots are usually of a kind, gentle disposition, easily tamed, and learn to live very happily in a cage. When captive they eat sugar, crackers, and almost any little dainty that is offered to them. They are fond of water, and bathe often.

The very long-tailed parrots called macaws, and parrakeets, are birds of Central and Southern America. In India there are also very long-tailed parrots. In old times they were sent as presents to kings and queens. The parrakeets of Asia and Africa are called ring parrakeets, because each one has a collar of bright feathers about the neck. The two parrots called “the gray,” and “the festive,” or “jolly” parrot, are the most common as pets, are most amusing, and learn many words and tricks.

What are called “love birds” are very small and beautiful parrots, from North Africa. They are as small as bluebirds. They are the smallest of their race, and rather rare.

The cockatoos are kept in cages, not for their speech, as they do not learn to talk, but for their great beauty. You will know them by their high crests. They have their name from their note, or call. They are natives of tropic islands. Most of them have light-colored feathers, pink, lemon or white, with markings of brighter tints.

If you live where you can visit a large bird-store, you will do well to go to see some of these birds.

Let us now turn to that other house bird, and common pet, the canary.