Even though Gray Jays tend to be birds of remote wilderness areas, they
have gained notoriety as bold and curious "camp robbers". Attracted by
novel sounds or even wood smoke, they will brashly enter camp buildings
and tents and snatch food out of cooking utensils or from plates. They
are said to eat almost anything, from candles and soap to a plug of tobacco.
When not robbing north-woodsmen, they are, like most corvids, omnivorous.
During spring, summer and fall, insects make up a large portion of their
diet, including grasshoppers, caterpillars, bees, wasps and beetles. They
sometimes sally from a perch to catch flying insects like a flycatcher.
At other times, they eat carrion, small rodents, young birds, eggs, berries
and fruit. In times of scarcity, they have been observed to eat lichens.
Nest construction begins as early as March, while snow may still lie
deep in the northern forests. A nest of sticks, moss and lichens lined
with feathers, fur and plant down is constructed in a conifer tree over
a period of about three weeks. The female incubates 3 to 4 eggs while
being tended by the male. Both parents feed the nestlings, at first
with partially digested food. During the nesting season, Gray Jays are
quiet and secretive. Once fledged, the young remain with their parents
in a family group.
The sounds produced by Gray Jays are varied. Some shrill calls sound
like the calls of Red-tailed, Red-shouldered or Broad-winged Hawks.
Others calls are reminiscent of a Robin's clucking or the "ca, ca,
ca, ca..." call of an American Kestrel. Other sounds often heard
are soft, short and mellow whistles.
Gray Jays are usually permanent residents throughout their range,
which extends from north central Alaska to northern Labrador and Newfoundland,
and south to northern New York and New England in the East. In the West,
the range extends through the Rocky Mountains to northern New Mexico,
central Arizona, and northern California. In the Rockies, they tend
to be found at high altitudes, from about 8,000 or 9,000 feet to timberline
in Colorado and higher in the Southwest. In times of extreme food scarcity
there may be irruptions beyond the normal range and occasional altitudinal
movements in mountainous areas.
Description: Gray Jays have short black bills and lack crests.
They have dark, smoky-gray upperparts, hoods that extend to the top
of the crown in most populations, and white forecrowns and throats.
The white of the throat extends to the side of the head and below the
crown as a whitish collar. The breast and belly vary from whitish to
light gray. The wings are relatively short and the tail is long and
somewhat rounded. The flight feathers of most populations are tipped
with white.
There is a high degree of geographical variation in plumage. Gray
Jays from eastern Canada tend to be darker overall with a darker crown
that reaches nearly to the forehead. Those of the Rocky Mountains are
paler, with the dark crown restricted to the nape so that the head is
largely white. Birds of the Pacific Coast have dark upperparts, lack
white tips on the flight feathers, and have extensive black on the head
that contrasts with the light underparts.
Adult Gray Jays are unmistakable, but the juvenile plumage, which
is held until around August of the first year, can be quite confusing.
Some early authors even described the juveniles as a different species.
Juvenile Gray Jays are dark slate all over with a whitish malar stripe
that extends downward from their pale, gray bill. They lack the white
foreheads and throats and pale underparts of the adults.
Recording credits:
Gray Jay vocalizations recorded by William W. H. Gunn. Included on
Peterson Field Guide to Eastern/Central Bird Songs.
Copyright© 2001 Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology
