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Steller's jay

March 05, 2023

Steller's jay (Cyanocitta stelleri) is a bird native to western North America and the mountains of Central America, closely related to the blue jay found in eastern North America. It is also known as the long-crested jay, mountain jay, and pine jay. It is the only crested jay west of the Rocky Mountains. It is also sometimes colloquially called a "blue jay" in the Pacific Northwest, but is distinct from the blue jay (C. cristata) of eastern North America. The species inhabits pine-oak and coniferous forests.

Steller's jay
Steller's jay in Flagstaff, Arizona, with white head-markings typical of eastern-variety birds (C. s. macrolopha)
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Corvidae
Genus: Cyanocitta
Species:
C. stelleri
Binomial name
Cyanocitta stelleri
(Gmelin, 1788)[2]

Description

 
Adults along the Pacific Coast have blue streaks on their black crests.

Steller's jay is about 30–34 cm (12–13 in) long and weighs about 100–140 g (3.5–4.9 oz). Steller's jay shows a great deal of regional variation throughout its range. Blackish-brown-headed birds from the north gradually become bluer-headed farther south.[3] The Steller's jay has a more slender bill and longer legs than the blue jay and, in northern populations, has a much more pronounced crest.[4]: 69 [5] It is also somewhat larger.

The head is blackish-brown, black, or dark blue, depending on the subspecies of the bird, with lighter streaks on the forehead. This dark coloring gives way from the shoulders and lower breast to silvery blue. The primaries and tail are a rich blue with darker barring. Birds in the eastern part of its range along the Great Divide have white markings on the head, especially over the eyes; birds further west have light blue markers and birds in the far west along the Pacific Coast have small, very faint, or no white or light markings at all.

Phylogeny

 
Cyanocitta stelleri ridgwayi, a subspecies of Steller's jay found from Chiapas to Guatemala[5]

Steller's jay (Cyanocitta stelleri) is one of two species in the genus Cyanocitta, the other species being the blue jay (Cyanocitta cristata); because the two species sometimes interbreed naturally where their ranges overlap in the eastern foothills of the Rocky Mountains, their status as distinct species has been contested. There are 18 subspecies of Steller's jays ranging from Alaska to Nicaragua, with nine found north of Mexico, often with areas of low or non-existent presence of the species separating the subspecies. At least some of the variation in the species is due to different degrees of hybridization between Steller's jays (C. stelleri) and blue jays (C. cristata).[6]

The genus Cyanocitta is part of the passerine family Corvidae, which consists of the crows, ravens, rooks, jackdaws, jays, magpies, treepies, choughs, and nutcrackers.

Habitat

 
Western-variety Steller's jay, with all-dark head, in Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge.

Steller's jay occurs in most of the forested areas of western North America as far east as the eastern foothills of the Rocky Mountains from southern Alaska in the north to northern Nicaragua in the south[6] completely replacing the blue jay prevalent on the rest of the continent in those areas. Its density is lower in the central Rocky Mountain region (Montana, Idaho, Wyoming and eastern Utah) plus the desert or scrubland areas of the Great Basin (e.g. Nevada, western Utah, southern Arizona and parts of California). Some hybridization with the blue jay in eastern foothills of the Rocky Mountains, especially Colorado, has been reported. It is also found in Mexico occurring through the interior highlands in northwestern Mexico as well as patchy populations in the rest of Mexico. In the northern end of its range it appears to be spreading from coastal Southeast Alaska across the Coast Mountains into southern Yukon Territory.[7]

 
Steller's jay on Pebble Beach, California, USA.

Steller's jay is also found in Mexico's interior highlands from Chihuahua and Sonora in the northwest southward to Jalisco, as well as other patchy populations found throughout Mexico. It is also found in south-central Guatemala, northern El Salvador, Honduras and Nicaragua.[3]

Although Steller's jay primarily lives in coniferous forests, it can be found in other types of forests as well. They can be found from low to moderate elevations, and on rare occasions to as high as the tree line. Steller's jays are common in residential and agricultural areas with nearby forests.[8]

Diet

 
Steller's jays are omnivorous and can be social with humans.

Steller's jays are omnivores; their diet is about two-thirds plant matter and one-third animal matter. They gather food both from the ground and from trees. Steller's jay's diet includes a wide range of seeds, nuts, berries and other fruit. They also eat many types of invertebrates, small rodents, eggs, and nestlings such as those of the marbled murrelet. There are some accounts of them eating small reptiles, both snakes and lizards.[8]

Acorns and conifer seeds are staples during the non-breeding season; these are often cached in the ground or in trees for later consumption. They exploit human-provided food sources, frequently scavenging picnics and campsites, where it competes with the Canada jay.

Steller's jays will visit feeders and prefer black-oil sunflower seeds, white striped sunflower seeds, cracked corn, shelled raw peanuts, and are especially attracted to whole raw peanuts. Suet is also consumed but mostly in the winter season.

Breeding

Steller's jays breed in monogamous pairs.[9] The clutch is usually incubated entirely by the female for about 16 days.[10] The male feeds the female during this time. Though they are known to be loud both day and night, during nesting they are quiet in order to not attract attention.[11]

The nest is usually in a conifer, but is sometimes built in a hollow in a tree or beneath the awning of a house or other structure. Similar in construction to the blue jay's nest, it tends to be a bit larger (25 to 43 cm (9.8 to 16.9 in)), using a number of natural materials or scavenged trash, often mixed with mud. Between two and six eggs are laid during breeding season. The eggs are oval in shape with a somewhat glossy surface. The background colour of the egg shell tends to be pale variations of greenish-blue with brown- or olive-coloured speckles.

Vocalizations

Like other jays, the Steller's jay has numerous and variable vocalizations. One common call is a harsh "SHACK-Sheck-sheck-sheck-sheck-sheck" series; another "skreeka! skreeka!" call sounds almost exactly like an old-fashioned pump handle; yet another is a soft, breathy "hoodle hoodle" whistle. Its alarm call is a harsh, nasal "wah". Some calls are sex-specific: females produce a rattling sound, while males make a high-pitched "gleep gleep".

The Steller's jay is also a noted mimic: it can imitate the vocalizations of many species of birds, other animals, and sounds of non-animal origin. It often will imitate the calls from birds of prey such as the red-tailed hawk, red-shouldered hawk, and osprey as a warning of danger to others or territorial behavior, causing other birds to seek cover and flee feeding areas.[6][8]

Steller's Jays have the ability to assess risk using different predator detection cues. They have many alarm calls that are dependent on their interaction between predator identity and cue type. Steller's Jays respond to Sharp Shinned Hawks with a longer latency to return to feeding whether they are both seen or heard. In contrast to Steller's Jays, Sharp Shinned Hawks responded to Northern Goshawks with a longer latency to resume feeding if they were seen in comparison to only heard. The difference in reactions suggest that this is a distinct risk of assessment being conducted by the Steller's Jays. Steller's Jays will then vary the production of their "wah", "wek", and mimic red-tailed hawk calls in response to different detection cues. [12]

Etymology

This bird is named after the German naturalist Georg Wilhelm Steller, the first European to record them, in 1741.[13][14] Johann Friedrich Gmelin formally named the species after Steller in the 13th edition of Systema Naturae (first published in 1788).

Provincial bird

The Steller's jay is the provincial bird of the Canadian province of British Columbia.[15]

References

  1. ^ BirdLife International (2017). "Cyanocitta stelleri". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2017: e.T22705614A118809071. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2017-3.RLTS.T22705614A118809071.en. Retrieved 12 November 2021.
  2. ^ "Cyanocitta stelleri". Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Retrieved 2019-08-13.
  3. ^ a b Walker, L. E.; Pyle, P.; Patten, M. A.; Green, E.; Davison, W.; Muehter, V. R. (2016). Rodewald, P. G. (ed.). "Steller's Jay (Cyanocitta stelleri)". The Birds of North America Online. Ithaca, New York: Cornell Lab of Ornithology. doi:10.2173/bna.343. Retrieved 2019-08-13.
  4. ^ Madge, S.; Burn, H. (1994). Crows and Jays: A Guide to the Crows, Jays and Magpies of the World. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin.
  5. ^ a b Walker, L. E.; Pyle, P.; Patten, M. A.; Greene, E.; Davison, W.; Muehter, V. R. (2020). "Steller's Jay (Cyanocitta stelleri), version 1.0". Birds of the World. doi:10.2173/bow.stejay.01. S2CID 216421604.
  6. ^ a b c "Steller's Jay Cyanocitta stelleri". National Geographic. 4 May 2010. Retrieved 6 June 2013.
  7. ^ Ritchie, Haley (2020-10-27). "Steller's jay invasion: Coastal species making a rare appearance in southern Yukon". Yukon News. Retrieved 2020-10-27.
  8. ^ a b c "Steller's Jay". Seattle Audubon Society. Retrieved 6 June 2013.
  9. ^ Gabriel, P. O.; Black, J. M. (July 2012). "Reproduction in Steller's Jays (Cyanocitta stelleri): individual characteristics and behavioral strategies". The Auk. 129 (3): 377–386. doi:10.1525/auk.2012.11234. JSTOR 10.1525/auk.2012.11234.
  10. ^ Tweit, R. C. (2005). "Steller's Jay". Texas Breeding Bird Atlas. Texas A&M. Retrieved 6 June 2013.
  11. ^ Kaufman, K. (13 November 2014). "Steller's Jay". Audubon Society. Retrieved 2019-08-13.
  12. ^ Billings, Alexis (May–June 2017). "Steller's jays assess and communicate about predator risk using detection cues and identity". Oxford Academic.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  13. ^ . Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology. The Birds of North America Online. Cornell University. 2013. Archived from the original on 29 Apr 2013. Retrieved 6 June 2013.
  14. ^ Evans, Howard Ensign (1986). Halpern, Daniel (ed.). Antæus on Nature. London, UK: Collins Harvill. p. 24.
  15. ^ "B.C. Symbols - Province of British Columbia". gov.bc.ca. Government of British Columbia. Retrieved 2019-08-13.

Further reading

  • Goodwin, D. (1976). Crows of the World. Seattle, WA: University of Washington Press.
  • Greene, E.; Davison, W.; Davison, W.; Muehter, V.R. (1998). "Steller's jay - Cyanocitta stelleri". The Birds of North America. No. 343.

External links

 
Wikispecies has information related to Cyanocitta stelleri.
 
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Steller's jay.

March 05, 2023
steller, cyanocitta, stelleri, bird, native, western, north, america, mountains, central, america, closely, related, blue, found, eastern, north, america, also, known, long, crested, mountain, pine, only, crested, west, rocky, mountains, also, sometimes, collo. Steller s jay Cyanocitta stelleri is a bird native to western North America and the mountains of Central America closely related to the blue jay found in eastern North America It is also known as the long crested jay mountain jay and pine jay It is the only crested jay west of the Rocky Mountains It is also sometimes colloquially called a blue jay in the Pacific Northwest but is distinct from the blue jay C cristata of eastern North America The species inhabits pine oak and coniferous forests Steller s jaySteller s jay in Flagstaff Arizona with white head markings typical of eastern variety birds C s macrolopha source source Conservation statusLeast Concern IUCN 3 1 1 Scientific classificationKingdom AnimaliaPhylum ChordataClass AvesOrder PasseriformesFamily CorvidaeGenus CyanocittaSpecies C stelleriBinomial nameCyanocitta stelleri Gmelin 1788 2 Contents 1 Description 2 Phylogeny 3 Habitat 4 Diet 5 Breeding 6 Vocalizations 7 Etymology 8 Provincial bird 9 References 10 Further reading 11 External linksDescription Edit Adults along the Pacific Coast have blue streaks on their black crests Steller s jay is about 30 34 cm 12 13 in long and weighs about 100 140 g 3 5 4 9 oz Steller s jay shows a great deal of regional variation throughout its range Blackish brown headed birds from the north gradually become bluer headed farther south 3 The Steller s jay has a more slender bill and longer legs than the blue jay and in northern populations has a much more pronounced crest 4 69 5 It is also somewhat larger The head is blackish brown black or dark blue depending on the subspecies of the bird with lighter streaks on the forehead This dark coloring gives way from the shoulders and lower breast to silvery blue The primaries and tail are a rich blue with darker barring Birds in the eastern part of its range along the Great Divide have white markings on the head especially over the eyes birds further west have light blue markers and birds in the far west along the Pacific Coast have small very faint or no white or light markings at all Phylogeny Edit Cyanocitta stelleri ridgwayi a subspecies of Steller s jay found from Chiapas to Guatemala 5 Steller s jay Cyanocitta stelleri is one of two species in the genus Cyanocitta the other species being the blue jay Cyanocitta cristata because the two species sometimes interbreed naturally where their ranges overlap in the eastern foothills of the Rocky Mountains their status as distinct species has been contested There are 18 subspecies of Steller s jays ranging from Alaska to Nicaragua with nine found north of Mexico often with areas of low or non existent presence of the species separating the subspecies At least some of the variation in the species is due to different degrees of hybridization between Steller s jays C stelleri and blue jays C cristata 6 The genus Cyanocitta is part of the passerine family Corvidae which consists of the crows ravens rooks jackdaws jays magpies treepies choughs and nutcrackers Habitat Edit Western variety Steller s jay with all dark head in Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge Steller s jay occurs in most of the forested areas of western North America as far east as the eastern foothills of the Rocky Mountains from southern Alaska in the north to northern Nicaragua in the south 6 completely replacing the blue jay prevalent on the rest of the continent in those areas Its density is lower in the central Rocky Mountain region Montana Idaho Wyoming and eastern Utah plus the desert or scrubland areas of the Great Basin e g Nevada western Utah southern Arizona and parts of California Some hybridization with the blue jay in eastern foothills of the Rocky Mountains especially Colorado has been reported It is also found in Mexico occurring through the interior highlands in northwestern Mexico as well as patchy populations in the rest of Mexico In the northern end of its range it appears to be spreading from coastal Southeast Alaska across the Coast Mountains into southern Yukon Territory 7 Steller s jay on Pebble Beach California USA Steller s jay is also found in Mexico s interior highlands from Chihuahua and Sonora in the northwest southward to Jalisco as well as other patchy populations found throughout Mexico It is also found in south central Guatemala northern El Salvador Honduras and Nicaragua 3 Although Steller s jay primarily lives in coniferous forests it can be found in other types of forests as well They can be found from low to moderate elevations and on rare occasions to as high as the tree line Steller s jays are common in residential and agricultural areas with nearby forests 8 Diet Edit Steller s jays are omnivorous and can be social with humans Steller s jays are omnivores their diet is about two thirds plant matter and one third animal matter They gather food both from the ground and from trees Steller s jay s diet includes a wide range of seeds nuts berries and other fruit They also eat many types of invertebrates small rodents eggs and nestlings such as those of the marbled murrelet There are some accounts of them eating small reptiles both snakes and lizards 8 Acorns and conifer seeds are staples during the non breeding season these are often cached in the ground or in trees for later consumption They exploit human provided food sources frequently scavenging picnics and campsites where it competes with the Canada jay Steller s jays will visit feeders and prefer black oil sunflower seeds white striped sunflower seeds cracked corn shelled raw peanuts and are especially attracted to whole raw peanuts Suet is also consumed but mostly in the winter season Breeding EditSteller s jays breed in monogamous pairs 9 The clutch is usually incubated entirely by the female for about 16 days 10 The male feeds the female during this time Though they are known to be loud both day and night during nesting they are quiet in order to not attract attention 11 The nest is usually in a conifer but is sometimes built in a hollow in a tree or beneath the awning of a house or other structure Similar in construction to the blue jay s nest it tends to be a bit larger 25 to 43 cm 9 8 to 16 9 in using a number of natural materials or scavenged trash often mixed with mud Between two and six eggs are laid during breeding season The eggs are oval in shape with a somewhat glossy surface The background colour of the egg shell tends to be pale variations of greenish blue with brown or olive coloured speckles Vocalizations EditLike other jays the Steller s jay has numerous and variable vocalizations One common call is a harsh SHACK Sheck sheck sheck sheck sheck series another skreeka skreeka call sounds almost exactly like an old fashioned pump handle yet another is a soft breathy hoodle hoodle whistle Its alarm call is a harsh nasal wah Some calls are sex specific females produce a rattling sound while males make a high pitched gleep gleep The Steller s jay is also a noted mimic it can imitate the vocalizations of many species of birds other animals and sounds of non animal origin It often will imitate the calls from birds of prey such as the red tailed hawk red shouldered hawk and osprey as a warning of danger to others or territorial behavior causing other birds to seek cover and flee feeding areas 6 8 Steller s Jays have the ability to assess risk using different predator detection cues They have many alarm calls that are dependent on their interaction between predator identity and cue type Steller s Jays respond to Sharp Shinned Hawks with a longer latency to return to feeding whether they are both seen or heard In contrast to Steller s Jays Sharp Shinned Hawks responded to Northern Goshawks with a longer latency to resume feeding if they were seen in comparison to only heard The difference in reactions suggest that this is a distinct risk of assessment being conducted by the Steller s Jays Steller s Jays will then vary the production of their wah wek and mimic red tailed hawk calls in response to different detection cues 12 Etymology EditThis bird is named after the German naturalist Georg Wilhelm Steller the first European to record them in 1741 13 14 Johann Friedrich Gmelin formally named the species after Steller in the 13th edition of Systema Naturae first published in 1788 Provincial bird EditThe Steller s jay is the provincial bird of the Canadian province of British Columbia 15 References Edit BirdLife International 2017 Cyanocitta stelleri IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2017 e T22705614A118809071 doi 10 2305 IUCN UK 2017 3 RLTS T22705614A118809071 en Retrieved 12 November 2021 Cyanocitta stelleri Integrated Taxonomic Information System Retrieved 2019 08 13 a b Walker L E Pyle P Patten M A Green E Davison W Muehter V R 2016 Rodewald P G ed Steller s Jay Cyanocitta stelleri The Birds of North America Online Ithaca New York Cornell Lab of Ornithology doi 10 2173 bna 343 Retrieved 2019 08 13 Madge S Burn H 1994 Crows and Jays A Guide to the Crows Jays and Magpies of the World Boston MA Houghton Mifflin a b Walker L E Pyle P Patten M A Greene E Davison W Muehter V R 2020 Steller s Jay Cyanocitta stelleri version 1 0 Birds of the World doi 10 2173 bow stejay 01 S2CID 216421604 a b c Steller s Jay Cyanocitta stelleri National Geographic 4 May 2010 Retrieved 6 June 2013 Ritchie Haley 2020 10 27 Steller s jay invasion Coastal species making a rare appearance in southern Yukon Yukon News Retrieved 2020 10 27 a b c Steller s Jay Seattle Audubon Society Retrieved 6 June 2013 Gabriel P O Black J M July 2012 Reproduction in Steller s Jays Cyanocitta stelleri individual characteristics and behavioral strategies The Auk 129 3 377 386 doi 10 1525 auk 2012 11234 JSTOR 10 1525 auk 2012 11234 Tweit R C 2005 Steller s Jay Texas Breeding Bird Atlas Texas A amp M Retrieved 6 June 2013 Kaufman K 13 November 2014 Steller s Jay Audubon Society Retrieved 2019 08 13 Billings Alexis May June 2017 Steller s jays assess and communicate about predator risk using detection cues and identity Oxford Academic a href Template Cite web html title Template Cite web cite web a CS1 maint url status link Steller s Jay Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology The Birds of North America Online Cornell University 2013 Archived from the original on 29 Apr 2013 Retrieved 6 June 2013 Evans Howard Ensign 1986 Halpern Daniel ed Antaeus on Nature London UK Collins Harvill p 24 B C Symbols Province of British Columbia gov bc ca Government of British Columbia Retrieved 2019 08 13 Further reading EditGoodwin D 1976 Crows of the World Seattle WA University of Washington Press Greene E Davison W Davison W Muehter V R 1998 Steller s jay Cyanocitta stelleri The Birds of North America No 343 External links Edit Wikispecies has information related to Cyanocitta stelleri Steller s jay Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology Species Account Cornell University Steller s jay media Internet Bird Collection Steller s jay photo gallery at VIREO Drexel University Wikimedia Commons has media related to Steller s jay Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Steller 27s jay amp oldid 1125993257, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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