Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata)

The Northern Blue Jay is a bold corvid with vivid blue plumage. It has a less vivid blue plumage on its creat and back. Its nare, over the eyes and the upper portion of the nape and breast are dark navy blue. The belly and face are white. The thick and massive corvid bill and the legs and feet are black.

The blue tail and flight feathers of the jay are marked with black stripes. The tips of flight feathers and the covert are white. The marking makes it a fancy decoration that stands out in the woods.

New Marlborough, MA
2009-10-20

This individual came up to the bird feeder for sunflower seeds.

Other Corvidae species:

Western Scrub Jay
*Aphelocoma californica*

Acorn Woodpecker• American Coot• American Crow• American Robin• American White Ibis• American White Pelican• Anhinga• Audubon's Warbler• Black Phoebe• Black-Capped Chickadee• Blue Jay• Boat-Tailed Grackle• Brewer's Blackbird• Brown Pelican• Bufflehead• Canada Goose• Chestnut-Backed Chickadee• Collared-Dove• Common Gallinule• Common Goldeneye• Common Grackle• Double-Crested Cormorant• Downy Woodpecker• European Starling• Fox Sparrow• Glossy Ibis• Golden-Crowned Sparrow• Graylag Goose• **Great Blue Heron• Great Egret• Herring Gull• House Sparrow• **Killdeer• Least Bittern• Least Sandpiper• Lesser Goldfinch• Limpkin• Lincoln's Sparrow• Mallard• Mourning Dove• Northern Cardinal• Northern Mockingbird• Oak Titmouse• Osprey• Palm Warbler• Pied-Billed Grebe• Purple Finch• Red-Bellied Woodpecker• Red-Breasted Nuthatch• Red-Winged Blackbird• Ring-Billed Gull• Ringed Plover• Ruby-Crowned Kinglet• Sanderling• Sandhill Crane• Semipalmated Sandpiper• Sharp-Shinned Hawk• Short-Tailed Hawk• Snowy Egret• Song Sparrow• Spotted Towhee• Steller's Jay• Tricolored Heron• Trumpeter Swan• Tufted Titmouse• Turkey Vulture• Western Grebe• Western Gull• Western Meadowlark• Western Scrub Jay• **Western Swamphen• White-Breasted Nuthatch• White-Crowned Sparrow• Wild Turkey• Willet• Wood Stork