Birds Posters
Bluejays
Blue jays are native to the Nearctic region. They are common in southern Canada and in the United States, east of the Rocky Mountains.
They are also common in suburban areas and city parks.
Blue jays are bright blue on top and whitish gray on the belly and chin.
They have a gray-blue, feather crested head, which they can raise and lower.
The feathers on their wings and tails are bright blue with white and black bands.
Captive jays have been observed using tools and strips of newspaper to rake in food pellets from outside their cages.
The Blue Jay's coloration is not derived by pigments, but is the result of light refraction due to the internal structure of the feathers;
if a Blue Jay feather is crushed, the blue disappears as the structure is destroyed.
They will sometimes prey on eggs and nestlings of other birds nests.
The Blue Jay mainly feeds on nuts and seeds such as acorns, soft fruits, arthropods, and occasionally small vertebrates.
It typically gleans food from trees, shrubs, and the ground, though it sometimes hawks insects from the air.
It builds an open cup nest in the branches of a tree, which both sexes participate in constructing.
This common, large songbird is familiar to many people, with its perky crest; blue, white, and black plumage; and noisy calls.
Blue Jays are known for their intelligence and complex social systems with tight family bonds.
Their fondness for acorns is credited with helping spread oak trees after the last glacial period.