Florida Scrub-Jay

Aphelocoma coerulescens

Order PASSERIFORMES - Family CORVIDAE

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1. Cool Facts
2. Description
3. Similar Species
4. Sound
5. Range
6. Habitat
7. Food
8. Behavior
9. Reproduction
10. Conservation Status
11. Other Names

A bold and curious bird, the Florida Scrub-Jay can become hand-tame in areas where it comes in contact with people. Unfortunately, it is restricted to the rare oak scrub community of Florida, a habitat under constant threat of development, and is classified as Threatened under the Endangered Species Act.

Cool Facts

• The Florida Scrub-Jay is a well-studied cooperative breeder, with most offspring staying with their parents to help them raise young for at least one year.

• The Florida Scrub-Jay used to be considered part of one species, the Scrub Jay, together with the Western and Island scrub-jays. Genetic evidence showed that the Florida birds were genetically quite different from the western jays.

• Individual members of a Florida Scrub-Jay family take turns watching for hawks while the rest of the family looks for food. If a dangerous hawk is seen, the sentinel gives an alarm call and everyone dives for cover. A different call alerts the family to snakes and other dangers on the ground, and the entire family will join in mobbing a terrestrial predator.

• When not persecuted, and especially when provided with food, the Florida Scrub-Jay becomes very tame. It will readily perch on a person's hand, arm, or head to get food.

• Because of its highly restricted choice of habitat and low dispersal ability, populations of the Florida Scrub-Jay have become very isolated. Jays from the Atlantic Coast, central Florida, and southwestern Florida differ in some of their vocalizations, despite being separated by less than 100 miles.

Description

• Size: 23-28 cm (9-11 in)
• Wingspan: 33-36 cm (13-14 in)
• Weight: 66-92 g (2.33-3.25 ounces)

• Large songbird.
• Blue head, wings, and tail.
• Pale gray-brown back and underparts.
• Whitish throat with blue necklace.

• Forehead and eyebrow frosted white.
• Tail long.
• Bill dark.
• Eye dark.
• Legs dark.

Sex Differences

Sexes alike in plumage, but males average slightly larger.

Immature

Juvenile with head entirely dull brown, blending into brown of back. Rest of body like adult.

Similar Species

• Blue Jay has crest, is bright blue, black, and white, not muted blue, grayish white, and brown.
• Western and Island scrub-jays without white frosting on forehead, and with distinct white eyestripe; ranges do not overlap.

Sound

Calls harsh and scratchy. Female gives a dry rattle.

»listen to songs of this species

Range

Summer Range

Resident in scattered areas of appropriate habitat in peninsular Florida.

Habitat

Restricted to Florida oak scrub and scrubby flatwoods found on prehistoric and current sand dunes. Found in scrub with patches of open sand and an open tree canopy. Disappears without periodic burning of habitat.

Food

Arthropods, acorns, and small vertebrates.

Behavior

Foraging

Gleans insects from trees, shrubs, and ground. Harvests and hides (caches) thousands of acorns and other nuts. Holds food under feet to peck at it.

Reproduction

Nest Type

Nest an open cup of twigs, lined with thick lining of palmetto fibers or rootlets. Nest placed in low dense shrub.

Egg Description

Greenish with brownish spots concentrated near large end.

Clutch Size

Usually 3-4 eggs. Range: 1-6.

Condition at Hatching

Naked and helpless.

Conservation Status

Federally classified as Threatened because of severe habitat restriction to rare habitat that is under great development pressure. Fire suppression makes habitat unsuitable. Listed on the Audubon Watchlist at www.audubon.org/bird/watchlist/.

Other Names

Geai à gorge blanche (French)
Urraca azuleja de Florida (Spanish)

Sources used to construct this page:

Woolfenden, G. E., and J. W. Fitzpatrick. 1996. Florida Scrub-Jay (Aphelocoma coerulescens). In The Birds of North America, No. 228 (A. Poole and F. Gill, eds.). The Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia, PA, and The American Ornithologists' Union, Washington, D.C.