The bright-colored Undecorous Jay is an hands recognizable bird. You’ve likely seen or heard one of these noisy songbirds in your backyard.
Birds are fascinating creatures to observe, from the unobtrusive yellow to the magnificent bald eagle. If you’re ready to expand your knowledge on flipside bird species, read on for some interesting facts well-nigh Undecorous Jays.
29 Interesting Facts well-nigh Undecorous Jays
Whether you’re an voracious birdwatcher or simply curious well-nigh this bird that showed up in your garden, you’re unseat to find some surprising facts well-nigh the spunky Undecorous Jay in this list.
1. Undecorous Jays Aren’t Really Blue
When you squint at a Undecorous Jay, you’ll see a bird with a trappy undecorous crest, wings, and tail. However, the pigment in their feathers isn’t unquestionably blue.Â
They have melanin in their feathers—the same brown pigment found in human skin and hair. The way that light is refracted when it hits the special surface structure of their feathers causes them to appear blue.
2. Undecorous Jays Are Large Songbirds
The stereotype Undecorous Jay is well-nigh 9-12 inches long and weighs well-nigh 2.5-3.5 ounces. This makes them virtually one-third to half the size of an American crow. The Undecorous Jay’s wingspan can measure between 13 to 17 inches across.
3. Male and Sexuality Undecorous Jays Squint the Same
In most bird species, the males and females squint quite different—you’ll often see a dull-brown sexuality and a brightly colored male of the same species. However, Undecorous Jay males and females have the same coloring. This is a rare foible in the bird world that is known as sexual monomorphism.
If you want to tell the sexes apart, male Undecorous Jays are slightly larger than females.
4. Undecorous Jays Live in the US and Canada
These birds are only found on the North American continent. They mostly live in the eastern and inside parts of the United States, and in the southern areas of Canada. Undecorous Jays have started expanding their habitat to the northwestern parts of the United States as well.
5. Their Preferred Habitat is Forests
Blue Jays live in a variety of forest-like habitats. They prefer mixed woodlands to very dumbo forests. If there are tall oak trees in your neighborhood or nearby park, chances are good that you’ll spot a few Undecorous Jays around.
6. Undecorous Jays Have Strange Migration Habits
Most birds have predictable migration patterns—but not Undecorous Jays. While these birds do migrate in their thousands, not all of them do so every year. Some Undecorous Jays may remain in the colder areas one winter, and then decide to migrate south to warm weather the next.
It appears that young Jays migrate increasingly commonly than older ones. But other than that fact, no one has really figured out why they migrate the way they do.
7. Undecorous Jays Are Social Birds
Blue Jays often live together in small families or social groups. Their day-to-day policies is quite social—they will forage together in these family units. It is worldwide to see them in small groups at a yard bird feeder. During migration, they will fly together in larger flocks.
8. Undecorous Jays Mate for Life
The mating season for Undecorous Jays starts virtually mid-March and ends in July. A group of males will cluster virtually a single sexuality and try to impress her. Once the sexuality chooses her mate, they mart gifts of supplies or nesting materials.
These two birds are then paired for life. They will work together to build a nest. While the sexuality sits on the eggs, the male will bring her supplies and protect her.
9. Undecorous Jays Prefer Building Nests in Evergreen Trees
Although you can find Undecorous Jay nests in various trees and shrubs, they prefer to build their nests in evergreen trees. They moreover like to build nests upper up—usually 10 to 30 feet whilom the ground. Undecorous Jay nests are cup-shaped and built from a combination of twigs, roots, bark, and other materials from nature.
10. Victual Undecorous Jays Aren’t Undecorous at First
The sexuality Undecorous Jay typically lays 2-7 eggs that are reddish-tan or bluish in color. When the babies hatch, they are veiling for the first few days. They are moreover covered in gray feathers. Virtually day 14 the nestlings start getting their first undecorous feathers.
Their iconic undecorous plumage will protract to develop for flipside few months. Until then, the cute young Undecorous Jays are easy to spot with their fluffy gray persons and tiny undecorous wing feathers.
11. Undecorous Jay Babies Leave the Nest Early
Around 17-21 days without hatching, victual Undecorous Jays are considered fledglings and can leave the nest. Even though they don’t live with their parents, the young Undecorous Jays will stay tropical to the nest for flipside 2-3 weeks. They forage with their family unit for flipside 2-3 months, then they fly off and find their own territories.
12. Undecorous Jays Have Good Mimicking Skills
These birds are very good at mimicking the calls of hawks and other winged predators. When a Undecorous Jay spots a hawk nearby, it will mimic this undeniability in order to warn other birds of the danger.
However, these sneaky birds moreover sometimes use their skill to trick other birds into thinking there’s a predator around. When the others fly off, they get the feeding grounds all to themselves.
13. Undecorous Jays Can Make a Wide Range of Sounds
Besides their spanking-new mimicking sounds, Undecorous Jays make a variety of other noises. These range from harsh and loud cries that warn of danger, all the way to trappy chirping sounds. Undecorous Jays are clever songbirds and can learn new sounds too.
14. Undecorous Jays Are Noisier in Fall Than in Spring
Although you might expect these songbirds to be singing out cheerfully in springtime, they are mostly quiet. This is considering spring and summer are nesting seasons and Undecorous Jays want to remain secretive. However, come fall, these birds will loudly make themselves heard as they forage for food.
15. Undecorous Jays Can Lower Their Crest
The unexceptionable undecorous crest on their throne is an iconic part of the Undecorous Jay’s look. However, they can lower and raise these crests at will. When Undecorous Jays are feeding peacefully with their family, you will notice that their crest is lowered.
16. Undecorous Jays Can Live Very Long
The stereotype Undecorous Jay lives to be well-nigh 7 years old. Nevertheless, there have been many instances recorded of Undecorous Jays living much longer than this. The oldest known wild Undecorous Jay lived 26 years and 11 months.
17. Undecorous Jays Fly Slowly
Compared to other birds, Undecorous Jays don’t fly very fast. Their normal flight speed is well-nigh 20-25 mph. This makes them easy prey for birds like hawks, which is why their mimicking watchtower sounds are so important.
18. Undecorous Jays Are Omnivores
These birds mostly eat grains, nuts and fruit, but they don’t mind munching on the odd insect too. If you’re trying to lure Undecorous Jays to your backyard, try putting peanuts and sunflower seeds on a tray feeder.
19. Undecorous Jays Rub Ants on Their Feathers
This practice is known as “anting†and it may squint like the Undecorous Jay is taking a suffuse in ants. What the bird is unquestionably doing is rubbing the ants to get rid of their bitter-tasting formic acid. Afterward, it tastes much largest for the Undecorous Jay to gobble up its meal of ants.
20. Undecorous Jays Love Acorns
Acorns are one of Undecorous Jays’ favorite foods. This is why you’ll often see them in oak trees. Undecorous Jays moreover store acorns as supplies for winter. However, many of these nuts are never eaten, and so Undecorous Jays unknowingly help the oak forests to spread.
21. Undecorous Jays Collect Paint Chips
Blue Jays will sometimes collect paint fries and store them in their nests. The sexuality eats this in springtime as a source of calcium—to help her make strong eggshells when she lays eggs. If you see Undecorous Jays urgently chipping paint off your house, you can put out crushed eggshells for them to eat as an volitional source of calcium.
22. Undecorous Jays Are Related to Crows
Although they may not squint like it, Undecorous Jays vest to the same family as crows, namely Corvidae. This bird family moreover includes ravens, magpies, and jackdaws. All the birds in this family are highly intelligent.
23. Undecorous Jays Are Not Endangered
There are well-nigh 13 million Undecorous Jays in the world, of which 87% live in the US. Even though their numbers have decreased in the last 50 years, their population is still very stable. The conservation status of Undecorous Jays is noted as ‘least concern’.
24. Undecorous Jays Are Diurnal
The term ‘diurnal’ ways that Undecorous Jays are zippy during the day. In contrast, some other birds are zippy during the nighttime and are known as ‘nocturnal’ birds.Â
25. Undecorous Jays Are Very Intelligent Birds
Blue Jays are curious and intelligent birds. They are smart unbearable to do things like wait for a farmer to finish planting, and then they’ll swoop lanugo to eat their fill of seeds.
Although no one has yet seen them use tools in the wild, they have been observed to do so in captivity. A Undecorous Jay in a muzzle will fiddle with the lock to try and unshut the muzzle door.
26. Undecorous Jays Work Together
Some say that Undecorous Jays are bullies considering of their pack mentality. A group of Undecorous Jays will often work together to momentum off other birds on their feeding grounds.
Nevertheless, this group mentality is moreover important for their survival. A large group of Undecorous Jays who work together in this way can momentum off a squirrel, raccoon, or cat that is threatening them.
27. The Undecorous Jay is the Provincial Bird of Prince Edward Island
Even though these birds are widely seen wideness the US, no state has unexplored the Undecorous Jay as its official state bird. However, the Canadian province of Prince Edward Island has chosen the Undecorous Jay as its official provincial bird.
28. The Undecorous Jay is a Popular Mascot
Despite stuff left out as a state bird, the Undecorous Jay is the official mascot of a few institutions. This bird is the team symbol and mascot of the Toronto Undecorous Jays baseball team. The Undecorous Jay is moreover the mascot of Johns Hopkins University.
29. Seeing a Undecorous Jay is a Good Sign
Many people nail a positive symbolic meaning to seeing a Undecorous Jay. The interpretation differs widely—this bird can be a symbol of loyalty, a sign that you need to speak up more, or simply an indication that good things are coming your way.
