Florida Scrub-Jay

It is 28 cm long, and weighs 75–85 g . It has a strong black bill, blue head and nape without a crest, a whitish forehead and supercilium, blue bib, blue wings, grayish underparts, gray back, long blue tail, black legs and feet.

The Florida Scrub-Jay is classified as Vulnerable (VU), considered to be facing a high risk of extinction in the wild.

The Florida Scrub-Jay: A Species in Peril1 = Steve A. Johnson, Karl E. Miller, and Travis Blunden2 Of the hundreds of native bird species living in Florida, only one, the Florida Scrub-Jay, is found nowhere else—they are true Floridians. The Florida Scrub-Jay is a habitat specialist found only in scrub habitat, the most endangered ecosystem type in Florida. As a result, Florida Scrub-Jay populations have declined dramatically, and this species is now federally listed as threatened. More

The Florida Scrub-Jay (Aphelocoma coerulescens) is one of the species of scrub-jay native to North America. It is the only species of bird endemic to the U.S. state of Florida. Because of this, it is heavily sought by birders who travel from across the country to observe this unique species. More

Scrub-Jay and the Florida Scrub-Jay; the taxon was then called, simply, the Scrub Jay. The Western Scrub-Jay is nonmigratory and can be found in urban areas, where it can become tame and will come to bird feeders. While many refer to scrub-jays as "blue jays", the Blue Jay is a different species of bird entirely. In recent years, the California Scrub-Jay has expanded its range north into the Puget Sound region of Washington. More

entire world, a FLORIDA SCRUB-JAY! I just knew their curiosity would get the better of them, I thought! He flew right up to me, close enough that I could easily touch him. What a bird! The beautiful blue shades contrasted so well with the tan on his back. He began to call to his mate, and she too flew in. Wow! The new header image......... Such a beautiful bird Calling to his mate....... More

The Florida Scrub-Jay Trailhead is in the town of Clermont located in beautiful South Lake County, FL. The Trail provides an excellant birdwatching destination, with a variety of habitat ranging from sandhill/scrub to wetlands adjacent to the Trail. Several species of birds can be found here including Florida's only endemic species, the Florida Scrub-Jay. The Florida Scrub-Jay Consortium, Inc. More

The purpose of the Florida Scrub-Jay Trail is to raise public awareness, and create habitat corridors for Florida's only endemic bird. Found no where else in the world this gem is losing habitat at an alarming rate. Its home of high dry sandy soils is where we have been developing our homes for decades with little regard for the loss of this species and others that also thrive only in such conditions. We look forward to your visit to The Florida Scrub-Jay Trail. More

The Florida Scrub-Jay is evaluated as Vulnerable at this time. This is due to a range that is fragmented and rather small. This bird is limited to Florida. Human disturbance and urban development are the primary threats facing this bird species. While the range of this bird once included almost all of Florida, it is now limited to just six counties. The population is estimated at around 4,000 breeding pairs. This bird has faced serious decline since the mid-20th century. More

The Florida scrub-jay is a 12-inch-long, blue and gray crestless jay that lacks the white wing spots and tail feather tips of the more common and widespread blue jay. A necklace of blue feathers separates the whiter throat from the gray whitish forehead. The tail is long and loose in appearance, and the back is gray. More

The Florida Scrub-Jay is a social bird, with a cooperative breeding system and a tendency to trust people, especially those with food. In 1995, the American Ornithologists' Union split it from the Western and Island Scrub-Jays. Their genus name, Aphelocoma, means "smooth hair," referring to their crestless heads. Appearance: Location helps to identify this Scrub-Jay, because it will seldom leave Florida's brushy oak scrub. The wings, tail, head and neck are dull blue. More

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. More

fieldwork that point to the same conclusion: Florida Scrub-Jays behave as if they live on islands, cramming themselves into small patches of scrub and rarely venturing out over foreign territory. “They just won’t fly long distances through prairie, forest, or marsh,” says Fitzpatrick, a former director of Archbold Biological Station who has studied the jays since 1972. “You can see them hating it when they try. And their reluctance is part of this glue holding them, ecologically and socially, to the place where they were born. More

The Florida scrub-jay is the rarest of five species belonging to the genus Aphelocoma, which translates as ‘smooth-hair’ and refers to the absence of the head crest possessed by some of the more ubiquitous North American jays (1) (3). The male Florida scrub-jay is slightly larger than the female but the plumage of both sexes is identically patterned with an attractive array of blues and greys (3) (4) (5). More

Bent Life History for the Florida Scrub-Jay - the common name and sub-species reflect the nomenclature in use at the time the description was written. FLORIDA JAY APHELOCOMA COERULESCENS COERULESCENS (Bose) Contributed by ALEXANDER SPRUNT, JR. HABITS Some birds are so thoroughly typical of certain habitats that one looks for them almost automatically when passing through such places. Perhaps of no species is this more true than the Florida jay. More

AN ECOLOGICAL OVERVIEW OF SCRUB HABITAT AND FLORIDA SCRUB-JAYS IN BREVARD COUNTY Scrub Habitat Scrub habitats comprise an increasingly imperiled ecosystem characterized by nutrient-poor soils, periodic drought, seasonally high rainfall, frequent wild fires, and plants and animals endemic to Florida. Sand pines are the dominant tree species indicative of sand pine scrub, while the most abundant and conspicuous plant indicators of xeric oak scrub are four species of shrubby, stunted oaks: sand live oak, myrtle oak, Chapman’s oak, and scrub oak. More

Florida scrub-jayIt is barely daybreak when Joan Jarvis and I reach the trailhead at Lyonia Preserve. Hues of tangerine and toast seep into the morning sky as we head up the sand path into the 400 acres of oak and rosemary scrub, a critical habitat for the Florida scrub-jay. The land here once looked like most of the undeveloped patches around Deltona, dense thickets of tall sand pines choking out the undergrowth. More

Looking for Florida Scrub-jay information in your county/city? Try these resources. More

REPRODUCTION AND DEVELOPMENT: Florida scrub-jays have a social structure that involves cooperative breeding, a trait that the western North American species of scrub-jays do not exhibit (Woolfenden and Fitzpatrick 1984). Florida scrub-jays live in groups ranging from two (a single mated pair) up to large extended families of eight adults and one to four juveniles. Fledgling scrub-jays remain with the breeding pair in their natal territory as "helpers," forming a closely-knit cooperative family group. More

The Florida Scrub-jay is a prize sighting for visiting bird watchers. The species is found only in Florida and is limited to a number of small areas in the state that have dry, sandy soil with oak scrub trees. The Florida Scrub-jay is a state-listed threatened species because oak scrub lands are prime areas for development. More

The Florida Scrub-Jay Trail is located at 11490 Monte Vista Road in Clermont, Fla. For more information, call (352) 429-5566, e-mail info@scrubjaytrail.org or log on to www.scrubjaytrail.org. What started as a curious find near their native plant nursery blossomed into a natural attraction unlike any other in Central Florida. The tandem of former television executives, Bruce and Cathy Brown, started their new business in the countryside of Clermont, Fla. More

Florida scrub-jays in various regions of Florida. Help Protect Nature! Donate Now With your help, we can protect Florida's only endemic bird, the Florida scrub-jay for people and nature Jay Watch volunteer Volunteer Opportunities Want to help save the Florida scrub-jay? Learn more about volunteer opportunities with the Jay Watch program. More