have had opportunity to hear. However uncertain this may be, I have never heard such notes by Jays in their natural haunts. I doubt if many other birds can surpass such low, sweet, metallic notes which they were wont to put together in the most pleasing way.
The Jay, like the Crow and English Sparrow, is popularly considered as a very intelligent bird. As with the Crow, it was to be expected that they would use the beak on the strings, Fig. 16. This they did throughout, making only a few attempts to open with the claws or hop up on the box as the smaller birds do most frequently.
The beginning tests, as may be noted, if the reader will refer to the table below, are of the same general kind which have been found for all smaller birds. This is true, particularly of all those which are compelled to open the door without any example by another bird which may serve as a model to be imitated, or what is probably more often the case, as only of general suggestive value which calls into play nothing more than what may be designated as the following instinct.
It should be said that because of lack of time these Jays were not allowed to eat from the box previous to the first tests and thus get accustomed to obtaining their food from it. This, of course, might have affected the first few results, but only these.
_Fig_16.jpg)
Fig. 16
The male Blue Jay is in the act of opening the door by pulling the knot on String B. In test 110 (Table X), though the strings had been changed to the left of the door, this bird persisted in opening the door by reaching through the wire and pulling up the latch.
