Cyanocitta
stelleri
(Steller's
Jay)
Physical
Description:
11 1/2-13 1/2"
(29-34 cm). Dark blue except for a black, crested head and black barring on
wings and tail.
Similar Species- Blue Jay
Song:
A
chook-chook-chook, a nasal kwheck-kwheck, and often a mimic of the Red- tailed
Hawk's call.
Distribution:
Resident
from portions of Alaska and southwestern Canada, south through western Montana,
Wyoming, northern Colorado and western Nebraska to southern California and Arizona,
east to portions of Colorado, New Mexico, and Texas, and south from there through
highlands of Middle America to Nicaragua.
Habitat:
Found in coniferous
and mixed coniferous/deciduous
forests, in humid coniferous forests (in northwestern northern America), and
in arid pine/oak. Also occurs in open woodlands, campsites, orchards, and gardens.
A study in north-central Idaho found no differences in numbers among clearcut,
fragmented, and contiguous stands of coniferous forest.
Diet:
Feeds on acorns, pine seeds,
fruits, insects, spiders, small reptiles and amphibians, and eggs and young
of small birds.
Ecology:
Builds cup-shaped
nest in coniferous (occasionally deciduous) tree. May travel in flocks of a dozen or more, but
is less gregarious than other jays. Forages
in trees and on ground. caches food.
Reproduction:
Female incubates 3-5 eggs (usually 4).
Nestlings are altricial. Young are tended by both
adults.
Conservation:
| Element Code: |
ABPAV02010 |
| Status: | Protected nongame species |
| Global Rank: | G5 |
| State Rank: | S5 |
| National Rank: | N5 |
Important
State References:
Hutto, R.L.
1993. Effects of clearcutting and fragmentation on the birds of a western coniferous
forest. Final report to Clearwater National Forest, Univ. Montana, Missoula.
13pp.