Object Status:
Extant
Accession Date:
By 26 March 1805
Notes:
It is probable that Wilson’s specimen was destroyed, because, in a letter to John Gardiner dated “Philadelphia, 12 September 1810,” Wilson wrote: “And have you ever remarked a solitary bird, something less than the blue Jay, and of a rather lighter colour than the Catbird—The forehead and lower parts are of a dirty white, the back wings and tail of a dark leaden grey, the hind head is black, and the feathers on the crown are full, as if crested. This bird is called the Canada Jay—I am extremely desirous of procuring a specimen. If it visits you it must be only in winter” (Hunter 1983: 379, The Life and Letters of Alexander Wilson, Philadelphia: American Philosophical Society).
Specimen Type:
Dead/preserved
Current Common Name:
Canada Jay
Current Scientific Name
Corvidae | Perisoreus canadensis
