Florida scrub jay
Florida scrub jay | |
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Adult in Lyonia Preserve, near Deltona, Florida | |
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Aves |
Order: | Passeriformes |
Family: | Corvidae |
Genus: | Aphelocoma |
Species: | A. coerulescens
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Binomial name | |
Aphelocoma coerulescens (Bosc, 1795)
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Synonyms | |
The Florida scrub jay (Aphelocoma coerulescens
Description
It measures 23 to 28 cm (9.1 to 11.0 in) in length, and weighs from 66 to 92 g (2.3 to 3.2 oz), with an average 80.2 g (2.83 oz). The wingspan of the jay is 33–36 cm (13–14 in).[7][8] 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.
Ecology
The Florida scrub jay is found only in
Florida scrub jays are
The Florida scrub jay may exhibit coordinated
Scrub jays may also take silverware and other shiny objects in a manner similar to the American crow.
Reproduction
Florida scrub jays are one of the few
After about 2 to 3 years, fledglings leave the group to form mating pairs of their own. Mating season ranges from March to June. Clutches usually contain about 3 to 4 eggs which are incubated in about 17 days. Fledging occurs in about 16 to 19 days. Fledglings can be distinguished from the adult birds due to the coloration of the feathers on their head, which are brown instead of blue. The brown feathers on the juvenile's head are slowly replaced by blue feathers as the bird matures into adulthood.
Conservation
Scrub habitat has dwindled considerably in the past several decades as Florida has continued to develop.
The Florida scrub jay was officially listed as a threatened state species by Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission in 1975 and it was listed as a threatened federal species by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service in 1987.
According to Partners in Flight, there were estimated to be 4000 individuals left in the wild.[16] Despite the protections, the Florida scrub jay is still thought to be on the decline. Studies done in Brevard County, once the county with the greatest population of scrub jays, has noted declines of some 33% since the 1993 census alone.
Another attempt to conserve the bird is an ongoing campaign to name the Florida scrub jay as the new state bird of Florida. The main argument for changing the state bird is that the current state bird (viz. the northern mockingbird) is the state bird of several other states, while the scrub jay is exclusive to Florida.
In recent years there has been some debate about whether or not the Florida scrub jay should be officially listed as an
On the other hand, the
A long-term and ongoing study of the Florida scrub jay has been taking place at the Archbold Biological Station at Lake Placid.
The Florida scrub jay was featured in episode 11, season 3 of the Showtime television series Penn & Teller: Bullshit!.
Dangers of human feeding
An inquisitive and intelligent species, the most striking attribute of the Florida scrub jay's behavior is its remarkable tameness.[17] As such, scrub jays willingly take food from human hands.
Unfortunately, this tameness is dangerous to the well-being of the species.
Another potential danger of feeding Florida scrub jays occurs when people feed them near a road, as one major cause of death for scrub jays in urban areas is collision with vehicles.[19] Since humans build subdivisions, railroads, and highways on the highest and driest ground, where Florida scrub jays like to live, this removal of habitats, along with the introduction of pets, especially cats not on a leash, has devastated scrub jay populations. In the last 100 years, 90% of the bird's population has been lost.[20]
Gallery
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Two adults at Lyonia Preserve
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Adult
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Brown-colored head of a juvenile
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Juvenile beginning to develop blue coloration on its head
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Juvenile at Juniper Prairie in Ocala National Forest
Footnotes
- A Etymology: Aphelocoma, from Latinized Ancient Greek apheles- (from ἀφελής-) "simple" + Latin coma (from Greek kome κόμη) "hair", in reference to the lack of striped or banded feathers in this genus, compared to other jays. coerulescens, Latin for "becoming blue", in reference to the species' color which is lighter than in most American jays.
References
- ^ .
- ^ "NatureServe Explorer 2.0". explorer.natureserve.org. Retrieved 19 April 2022.
- ISBN 0-486-20013-2.
- ^ Cynthia Berger (2004-08-01). "All-American Birds". Nwf.org. National Wildlife Federation. Archived from the original on 2017-10-01. Retrieved 2013-03-23.
- JSTOR 1369850.
- .
- ^ "Florida Scrub-Jay, Life History". All About Birds. Cornell University. Retrieved 2013-03-23.
- ISBN 978-0-8493-4258-5.
- ISBN 978-0-8130-4421-7.
- ^ "Florida sand pine scrub". Terrestrial Ecoregions. World Wildlife Fund. Retrieved 2009-07-28.
- ^ "Plants of the Florida Scrub". The Florida Scrub. Floridata. Archived from the original on 2009-04-02. Retrieved 2009-07-28.
- ^ "Taxonomy, Species Jay, Scrub, Florida". 1996-03-14. Archived from the original on 2004-02-25.
- S2CID 85703624.
- .
- ^ Defenders of Wildlife (2020). "Climate Change and Florida Scrub Jays". LandScope America. Retrieved 2020-02-25.
- ^ "Florida Scrub-Jay". Cornell University. Retrieved 2021-11-08.
- ^ Lowman, Meg (2006-06-04). "NATURE'S SECRETS". Herald Tribune. Archived from the original on 2008-05-16. Retrieved 2009-02-20.
People should never feed scrub jays. It is detrimental to their health, and it is also illegal!
- ^ Sauter, Annette (2005). Shall We Feed Suburban Florida Scrub-Jays Aphelocoma coerulescens? (PDF) (Thesis). Archived from the original (PDF) on March 19, 2009. Retrieved 2009-02-20.
Access to human provided foods causes a mismatch between brood demand and resources available for broods
- ^ "Florida Scrub-Jay". Audubon WatchList. Archived from the original on 2008-06-15. Retrieved 2013-03-23.
- ^ Boughton, Raoul K. & Bowman, Reed (9 May 2011). "State wide assessment of Florida Scrub-Jays on managed areas: A comparison of current populations to the results of the 1992-93 survey." (Report).
Further reading
- Alsop, Fred (2002): Smithsonian Handbooks: Birds of Florida. DK Pub., New York. ISBN 0-7894-8387-4
- Brevard County Natural Resources Management Office (2005): An Ecological Overview of Scrub Habitat and Florida Scrub-Jays in Brevard County Archived 2009-03-07 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved April 12, 2005.
- Florida Natural Areas Inventory (2001): Florida Scrub-jay. In: Field Guide to the Rare Plants and Animals of Florida. PDF fulltext Archived 2006-10-14 at the Wayback Machine
- Goodwin, Derek & Gillmor, Robert (1986): Crows of the World (2nd ed). British Museum of Natural History. ISBN 0-565-00979-6
- ISBN 0-7136-3999-7
- Morse, R. (2000): Richard Archbold and the Archbold Biological Station. University Press of Florida: Gainesville. ISBN 0-8130-1761-0
- Woolfenden, Glen E. & Fitzpatrick, John W. (1996): Florida Scrub-Jay (Aphelocoma coerulescens). In: Poole, A. & Gill, F. (eds.): The Birds of North America 228. The Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia, PA & The American Ornithologists' Union, Washington, D.C. Online version, retrieved 2006-10-11.
External links
- Florida Scrub-Jay on All About Birds by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology
- Florida Scrub Jay Aphelocoma coerulescens. USGSPatuxent Bird Identification InfoCenter.
- Florida Scrub-Jay WatchList Species Account Archived 2015-02-26 at the Wayback Machine from the American Bird Conservancy
- Florida Scrub-Jay Campaign mentions the movement to adopt the Scrub-Jay as Florida's State Bird
- Florida Scrub-Jay photo gallery – VIREO
- Florida Scrub Scrub-Jay Sound
- Florida Scrub-Jay call from Cornell Lab of Ornithology (RealMedia format).