Steller's Jay Cyanocitta stelleri
In 1987, the children of
Often mistakenly called the Blue Jay, this Jay is a typical member of the Corvidae family, sharing its loud calls, bold nature and scavenging habits with crows and other Jays. It has a dark crest on its head which it can puff up or fold back along its head. Corvidae are considered to be one of the most intelligent and adaptable family of birds in the world.
This jay was named after George Steller, The German Naturalist who accompanied Vitrius Bering on his trip to discover the Bering Straight.
Larger than a robin, the Steller's Jay can be told apart from its close cousin because it has a solid black head and neck, with irridescent blue back and body. The only white it has is tiny white eyebrows. Males and females look the same. It prefers to perch in trees where it can escape into thick branches if threatened.
The Steller's Jay lives
only on the west side of and in the
The wings of the jays are short and rounded, allowing them more manoeverability through dense trees. Their long rounded tail acts like a rudder to improve manoeverability as well. Watch for a flight pattern where they flap a few times, then glide, in the process losing altitude. They must then beat their wings again to climb in the air.
Steller's Jays live in conifer and pine-oak forests where food is available most of the year. They feed on nuts, acorns, seeds, insects, berries, eggs and young chicks. They will also scavenge fat (suet) and meat off animal carcasses. They will often hide excess food in the soil, under branches or in cracks in trees to eat later when food is scarce (usually in the winter). In winter, as much as 95% of their diet can be stored nuts and seeds.
During courtship, the male feeds the female and jumps around her, often changing direction in one jump. You can watch for this behavior in the spring before nest building begins. Both parents defend a territory from other Jays around their nest.
These Jays build a nest of mostly conifer twigs in a dense conifer tree such as a Cedar at least 4 meters (12 feet) off the ground. The nest is placed on a horizontal branch or in a crotch. The nest is lined with rootlets of conifers. Usually about 3-4 pale green eggs with spots are laid. These hatch in about 16 days and both parents care for the chicks. It takes them about 3 weeks to fledge. Young jays stay with their parents over the winter and flock up with other families. Those living high in the mountains will move to lower elevations in the winter if they cannot find enough food during storms.
The call of the adults is a cheeky "shack, shack, shack" usually repeated in groups of three. This call is often recognized as a warning call by other birds and mammals in the area as the Jays tend to act like watch dogs and sound the alarm. They, like other members of the jay family, are good at mimicing other birds, particularly the call of the Red-tailed Hawk. Scientists believe this call scares away predators.
Steller's Jay will also
dive bomb predators such as an owl sitting in a tree or a cat walking on the
ground. This is called 'mobbing'. This is a behavior common to many birds, and
is usually done by a flock of birds, rather than an individual bird. Scientists
believe mobbing has several functions:
1. to scare off predator.
2. to let other birds know a predator is in the area.
3. to protect young.
by Donna Hill B.Sc. B.Ed. 1998