Blue Jay - Species Profile
Conservation • Description • Habitat • Ecology • Distribution • Taxonomy
Conservation Status
IUCN Red List
LC - Least Concern
NatureServe
N5B, N5N - Secure Breeding and Nonbreeding
SNR - Unranked
Minnesota
not listed
Description
Size
Total length: 11″ to 12½″
Wingspan: 16″
Voice
A loud, screaming, jay-jay-jay
A high note followed quickly by a low note, the pair often repeated rapidly two or three times, and sounding melodious. It is often called the “rusty pump call.”
It can also imitate a red-shouldered hawk.
Similar Species
Habitat
Mixed and deciduous forests, agricultural areas, suburban areas, city parks
Ecology
Migration
Nesting
Diet
Distribution
Occurrence
Common to abundant
Maps
The Minnesota Ornithologists’ Union All Seasons Species Occurrence Map
Taxonomy
Class
Aves (Birds)
Order
Passeriformes (Perching Birds)
Family
Corvidae (Crows, Jays, and Magpies)
Genus
Cyanocitta (Blue and Steller’s Jays)
Subordinate Taxa
Great Plains Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata cyanotephra)
Northern Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata bromia) 
South Florida Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata semplei)
Southeastern Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata cristata)
Synonyms
