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Blue Jay

Cyanocitta cristata

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Cyanocitta cristata by EricBrian
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Order
Passeriformes
Family
Corvidae
Genus
Cyanocitta
Species
cristata
Regional

This bug has been reportedly found in the following regions:

Albertville, Alabama

Cullman, Alabama

Tuskegee, Alabama

Vincent, Alabama

Marina, California

San Francisco, California

Denver, Colorado

Fowler, Colorado

Brookfield, Connecticut

Madison, Connecticut

North Haven, Connecticut

Dover, Delaware

Ellendale, Delaware

Bartow, Florida

Daytona Beach, Florida

Fort Lauderdale, Florida

Fountain, Florida

Hollywood, Florida

Jacksonville, Florida(2 reports)

Lecanto, Florida

Melbourne, Florida

Miami, Florida

New Port Richey, Florida

Sarasota, Florida

Trenton, Florida

Winter Springs, Florida

Dallas, Georgia

Jekyll Island, Georgia

Marietta, Georgia

Snellville, Georgia

Algonquin, Illinois

Cherry Valley, Illinois

Divernon, Illinois

Rock Falls, Illinois

Tinley Park, Illinois

Westchester, Illinois

Coatesville, Indiana

Corunna, Indiana

Memphis, Indiana

Des Moines, Iowa

Dubuque, Iowa

Hubbard, Iowa

Sioux Center, Iowa

Sioux City, Iowa

Yale, Iowa

Calvert City, Kentucky

Ewing, Kentucky

Hebron, Kentucky

Melbourne, Kentucky

Baton Rouge, Louisiana

Clinton, Maryland

Delmar, Maryland

Frederick, Maryland

Linthicum Heights, Maryland

Oakland, Maryland

Halifax, Massachusetts

Beaverton, Michigan

Belleville, Michigan

Brooklyn, Michigan

Dearborn, Michigan(2 reports)

Dearborn Heights, Michigan

Dowagiac, Michigan

Royal Oak, Michigan

Traverse City, Michigan

Ypsilanti, Michigan

Albertville, Minnesota

Britt, Minnesota

Grand Portage, Minnesota

Hamel, Minnesota

Le Center, Minnesota

Minneapolis, Minnesota

Golden, Mississippi

Maben, Mississippi

Marietta, Mississippi

Cole Camp, Missouri

Conway, Missouri

Marshfield, Missouri

Saint Louis, Missouri

Saint Robert, Missouri

Papillion, Nebraska

Beachwood, New Jersey

Blackwood, New Jersey

Denville, New Jersey

Hainesport, New Jersey

Marlton, New Jersey

Piscataway, New Jersey

Woodstown, New Jersey

Croton On Hudson, New York

Greenlawn, New York

Hamburg, New York

Himrod, New York

Pittsford, New York

Staten Island, New York

West Islip, New York

Yonkers, New York

Broadway, North Carolina

Concord, North Carolina

Elizabeth City, North Carolina

Oxford, North Carolina

Raleigh, North Carolina

Thomasville, North Carolina

Winston Salem, North Carolina

Belfield, North Dakota

Bucyrus, Ohio

Chillicothe, Ohio

Cleveland, Ohio

Columbus, Ohio

Dayton, Ohio

Haskins, Ohio

Lebanon, Ohio

North Ridgeville, Ohio

Oak Harbor, Ohio

Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

Mill City, Oregon

Downingtown, Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Scottdale, Pennsylvania

Whitehall, Pennsylvania

Summerville, South Carolina

Colome, South Dakota

Yankton, South Dakota

Cosby, Tennessee

Crossville, Tennessee

Elizabethton, Tennessee

Finger, Tennessee

Summertown, Tennessee

Austin, Texas(2 reports)

Desoto, Texas

Euless, Texas

Fort Worth, Texas(2 reports)

Houston, Texas(2 reports)

Katy, Texas

Magnolia, Texas

Mc Kinney, Texas

San Antonio, Texas(2 reports)

Spring, Texas(2 reports)

Weatherford, Texas

Essex Junction, Vermont

Alexandria, Virginia

Hurt, Virginia

Newport News, Virginia

Penhook, Virginia

Richmond, Virginia

Roanoke, Virginia

Sterling, Virginia

Walkerton, Virginia

Appleton, Wisconsin

Camp Douglas, Wisconsin

East Troy, Wisconsin

Tomah, Wisconsin

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Gardener's Notes:
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18 positives 2 neutrals 0 negative
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P

ParkerOak

Oak Park, IL | August 2018 | Positive
Here in the Driftless area of west central Wisconsin we see blue jays a bit in the spring, rarely in the summer, and then all the time in the autumn. I believe they're in the same family as crows and they do have a reputation for preying on the young of many songbirds.
One thing escapes me entirely: the words to describe their call in the autumn. It's metallic, liquid, tinkling--something impossible to reproduce for a human, and a sound distinctly their own. They are large, handsome, strong with a unique vocalization.
w

weRgroot

New Port Richey, FL (Zone 9b) | February 2017 | Positive
Blue Jays may be the cleanest birds I've ever seen. In my back yard they're always in pairs and one keeps watch from the fence while the other takes a bath. Then they switch. By the time they're through there will be little water left in the bird bath. They throw the water everywhere in an attempt to take a "shower". I love watching them and how they work together to secure a safe bath.
M

MsSassyplants

Cosby, TN (Zone 6b) | August 2015 | Neutral
I love Bluejays, but........... I can shed a little light on the mystery of why they are considered bullies and aggressive and why some smaller birds hate them and act aggressively towards them.

Bluejays are not particularly aggressive towards adult birds, but they WILL merrily raid nests and run off with nestlings. They eat them.
C

Chillybean

(Zone 5a) | October 2014 | Positive
I used to think these "fellows" were bullies, but that is until the Red-bellied Woodpeckers made themselves at home. Really, the Jays make a lot of noise, but I have not seen them being overly aggressive. No more than any other bird. Even the little Juncos get more feisty than the blue beauties.

I was curious about the scientific name, and figured Cyanocitta has something to do with blue. "Cristata" means crested. Yep, that's our Blue Jay.
s

soingolfer

Memphis, IN | January 2013 | Positive
I put a bird feeder out 5 months ago and the Blue Jays love the Black Sunflower Seeds. You can tell the other birds, except the Cardinal (our State Bird), bow down the Blue Jay. Beautiful animals. I'll try to post pictures.
x

xiamenmom

Dallas, GA (Zone 7a) | August 2011 | Positive
The blue jays have been to my yard 2x, feeding off seeds on the ground. They are a little loud, but the only birds that have been pushy with are the mourning doves. Don't scare them off, but do make them stay out of their way. Worth the noise since they are so colorful.
h

hydey6

Corunna, IN | July 2011 | Positive
I recently started to put peanuts out to try and attract blue jays because I feed Finches and Cardinals. I have not found the Blue Jays to be aggressive at all...they simply fly in, take the peanuts and fly out, not bothering any other birds. The Finches aren't bothered by them, but the sparrows and Cardinals go after them trying to chase them away. I even have a lone Robin going after them. The Blue Jays show no aggression at all toward the other birds harrassing them. There has to be a reason the other birds are attacking...so far I haven't seen it.
l

ladybug63

| May 2010 | Positive
I live in Southern Ontario. The Jays stay here year round along with the Cardinals and Chickadees. They all share the feeders and although the Jays are loud I enjoy their clamor when they are being disturbed. They will come down and drink in the water fall of the pond.
S

SteppinStone

San Francisco, CA | April 2010 | Positive
Western Scrub Jays are found in San Fancisco, California. They are a similar species to the Blue Jay. See this link:

//www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Western_Scrub-Jay/id#similar

According to the information in the above article, the Western Scrub Jay is the 'Blue Jay' of the dry Western lowlands.
b

bungalow1056

Winston-Salem, NC (Zone 7b) | April 2010 | Positive
Blue Jays are beautiful birds and are plentiful in central North Carolina. They are aggressive though. I was scarred as a kid when I saw one destroying the eggs out of another birds nest on my Mom's front porch. It's fun to watch them tussle with Cardinals here during the Spring mating season. I usually put my money on the Cardinal.
J

JuneyBug

Dover AFB, DE (Zone 7a) | March 2010 | Positive
I have never found them to be bullies, but I have always had plenty for different sized feeders for the different birds. They mostly stay on the ground eating the cracked corn and sunflower that I scatter for them and the squirrels. They also like the bigger tray feeders since they are such big birds. You can make "friends" with them using peanuts and cat food. This is really helpful if you have snakes in your yard as they will alert you with loud raspy screeches when one is seen. They are also pretty good guards against the hawks, chasing them away when they come to the feeders to hunt.
p

plantladylin

(Zone 1) | January 2010 | Positive
The Blue Jay is a very common backyard bird in my area, seen frequently at our feeders and nesting in nearby trees. They do have a loud, distinctive call but not so loud as to be offensive. Some people consider Jay's to be bullies but there are so many feeders in my neighborhood that we often see them feeding alongside other birds without any bickering. It is fun to watch though when they do want the feeders to themselves ... they will mimic the call of hawks to scare the other birds into hiding, giving them free reign at the feeders!
b

barbsalim

Miami, FL | April 2009 | Positive
I have a blue jay that every morning comes to my back door steps and takes dry food from my cat's bowl. He carries it over to the water bowl & dunks it before he eats.
D

DebinSC

Georgetown, SC (Zone 8a) | February 2009 | Neutral
For those trying to I.D. this bird by it's call, the sound is like a "rusty gate hinge". One of the easiest calls to recognize if you keep that in mind.
f

furlane

Papillion, NE | January 2009 | Positive
My children have gotten the biggest kick out of watching these guys pick peanuts off the deck rail. One hot shot kept trying to fly away with two peanuts still in shells. Never worked. The kids decided to see how bright this guy was and put a couple of empty shells on the rail. This guy would walk down the rail checking for the heavy ones before flying off. The three of them spent hours on this game.
w

wormfood

Lecanto, FL (Zone 9a) | January 2009 | Positive
When these birds are screaming their heads off it's because a threat is near. A pack of bluejays will chase a hawk right out of a tree and down the block.
D

DMgardener

(Daniel) Mount Orab, OH (Zone 6b) | January 2009 | Positive
This bird adores Sunflower Seeds. I save enough seeds for me from the heads and leave the remander on the grass and the Blue Jays will have a party with them! This is the 2nd. bluest bird in SW Ohio. (After the Indigo Bunting)
d

dahlianut

Calgary, AB (Zone 3a) | December 2008 | Positive
The Northern Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata bromia) nests in my neighbourhood. It is the largest subspecies and a duller blue that the others. Although they are loud, they are non-agressive in my garden so are tolerated by the nesting robins whereas other larger birds are driven out. Having separate feeders for the smaller birds keeps everyone happy!
n

nanny_56

Putnam County, IN (Zone 5b) | December 2008 | Positive
We also do not find our jays to be aggressive or bullies. They will even sit in the maple tree and take turns coming down to the platform to get nuts.

We have observed some that will imitate Red-tail Hawks to scare or keep away other small birds while they eat. I can't imagine a day without Blue Jays!
M

Mrs_Ed

Whiteside County, IL (Zone 5a) | December 2008 | Positive
Some say these birds are bullies, but I haven't found that so in my yard. They are large and loud though! Put whole peanuts out for them and let the fun begin.
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