Species Spotlight – Steller’s Jay

Steller’s Jay
Cyanocitta stelleri

The Steller’s Jay is a bird meant to be noticed, with its deep blue and black plumage and long, shaggy crest. It is native to the mountainous western U.S. and northwest coast, where its dark colors blend in well in the shadows. They are common in forest wilderness areas but are also known to frequent campgrounds, parks and back yards, where they beg brazenly for handouts with loud, raspy calls. When patrolling the woods, Steller’s jays stick to the high canopy, but you’re sure to hear their harsh, scolding calls if they’re nearby. Graceful and almost lazy in flight, they fly with long swoops on their broad, rounded wings.

Like other jays, Steller’s jays are sassy, nosy, intelligent and loud. They are the ultimate copycat, and love to mimic the vocalizations of many species of birds, other animals, and even non-animal sounds. They will often imitate calls from birds of prey — red-tailed hawk, red-shouldered hawk, and osprey, causing other birds to seek cover and flee feeding areas.

These jays spend much of their time exploring the forest canopy, and will descend to the forest floor to investigate visitors and look for food. Steller’s jays move around with bold hops of their long legs, both on the ground and among the branches of conifers. They pause often to scan their surroundings, cocking their head with sudden movements to and fro.

Steller’s jays are very social birds and travel in groups, sometimes playing with or chasing each other, and even are known to join mixed-species flocks. They’ll form flocks outside of the nesting season and often fly across clearings in single file. They are highly vocal outside of the nesting season, but when raising young or robbing nests, they’re more quiet and inconspicuous. These opportunistic birds are quick to take advantage of new food sources, including bird feeders, especially those full of peanuts. They pound on hard nuts with their bills to break them open.

These birds are omnivores, eating both plants and animals, and typically munch on insects, seeds, acorns, berries, nuts, small animals, eggs, and nestlings. Especially in summer, these jays will snack on tasty insects, including beetles, wasps, wild bees, even spiders, small rodents or lizards. If they’re feeling adventurous, they’ll also eat garbage, unguarded picnic treats, and feeder foods such as peanuts, sunflower seeds, and suet. Steller’s jays are opportunists and will steal food from other birds or look for handouts from people. Steller’s Jays are common nest predators, stealing both eggs and chicks from the nests of many species.

The Steller’s jay’s nest is built by both the male and female in coniferous trees, or sometimes in deciduous trees or shrubs, and is made from twigs, leaves, moss and dry leaves held together with mud. The inside is lined with pine needles, soft rootlets or animal hair.

Steller’s jays form monogamous, long-term relationships, and stay together year-round. They breed primarily in dense conifer forests, but will use other types of forest habitats at other times of the year.

The female Steller’s jay produces an average of 2-6 eggs. The eggs are oval in shape and are pale blue-green in color with small brown or olive spots. The female will incubate the eggs for about 16-18 days; the male will feed the female during this time. Both parents feed their young, which leave the nest after about two weeks of age. They begin making short flights within a few days of fledging, and can make sustained flights when they are a month old, and will begin to find their own food. The parents will continue to provide some food for the fledglings for about a month after they fledge.

COOL FACTS:

Steller’s Jays were discovered on an Alaskan island in 1741 by Georg Steller, a naturalist on a Russian explorer’s ship.

When a scientist officially described the species, in 1788, they named it after him – along with other discoveries including the Steller’s sea lion and Steller’s Sea-Eagle.

Steller’s Jays are habitual nest-robbers, like many other jay species. They’ve occasionally been seen attacking and killing small adult birds including a Pygmy Nuthatch and a Dark-eyed Junco.

An excellent mimic with a large repertoire, the Steller’s Jay can imitate birds, squirrels, cats, dogs, chickens, and some mechanical objects.

The oldest recorded Steller’s Jay was a male, and at least 16 years 1 month old when he was found in Alaska in 1987. He had been banded in the same state in 1972.

Jays will cache (store in ground) nuts to eat during the winter. They will put a leaf or piece of material to mark the location but forget where they store all of them. Their “forgetfulness” allows the nuts to germinate and grow into young trees.