Jay
The Jay is a colourful member of the crow family that is about the same size as a Jackdaw.
The Jay is mostly a pinkish brown colour with the underparts being slightly paler. The head has a black and white flecked crown, black moustache and white throat. The white rump contrasts starkly with the black tail. The iris of the eye is a pale blue, the bill is black and the legs are pink-brown. The wings are mostly black with white patches but also have striking blue patches, but close to these wing patches are actually bands of graduated shades of blue.
Although it is the most strikingly colourful member of the crow family, the Jay can be quite difficult to see since it is a shy woodland bird and rarely moves far from cover. It can often be seen flying across a woodland clearing or glade giving its raucous screeching call.
The Jay can be found across most of the UK, except northern Scotland, and occurs in both deciduous and coniferous woodland, parks and mature gardens. It particularly likes oak trees in the autumn when there are plenty of acorns which it seeks out and buries for retrieving later.
The majority of the UK population is sedentary but European birds are irruptive when there is a poor acorn harvest and may arrive in large numbers along the east coast of the UK in the autumn.
Date: 22nd April 2021
Location: Noak Bridge Nature Reserve, Noak Bridge, Essex
The Jay is mostly a pinkish brown colour with the underparts being slightly paler. The head has a black and white flecked crown, black moustache and white throat. The white rump contrasts starkly with the black tail. The iris of the eye is a pale blue, the bill is black and the legs are pink-brown. The wings are mostly black with white patches but also have striking blue patches, but close to these wing patches are actually bands of graduated shades of blue.
Although it is the most strikingly colourful member of the crow family, the Jay can be quite difficult to see since it is a shy woodland bird and rarely moves far from cover. It can often be seen flying across a woodland clearing or glade giving its raucous screeching call.
The Jay can be found across most of the UK, except northern Scotland, and occurs in both deciduous and coniferous woodland, parks and mature gardens. It particularly likes oak trees in the autumn when there are plenty of acorns which it seeks out and buries for retrieving later.
The majority of the UK population is sedentary but European birds are irruptive when there is a poor acorn harvest and may arrive in large numbers along the east coast of the UK in the autumn.
Date: 22nd April 2021
Location: Noak Bridge Nature Reserve, Noak Bridge, Essex
|
Also in: Crows
 |  |  |  |  |
 |  |  |  |  |
 |  |  |  |  |