How to Identify Blue Jays

Blue jays are considered by some as a nuisance due to their annoying bird call and their territorial instincts, which causes them to run off other birds and sometimes even small pets. Others, however, are still attracted to the bird because of their remarkable color and interesting features. Its color and features and the irritating racket it makes help make blue jays easy to identify.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Bird book
• Binoculars

1. Listen to the sound it makes. Because blue jays are loud and conspicuous, you will most likely hear one before you see it. Their squawking cadence most often sounds like "jay, jay, jay" or sometimes "thief, thief, thief," but they are capable of making other noises.

2. Take note of the blue coloring of a bird. There are a number of birds that are blue in color, but jays are noted for their blue upper body with the lower body being pale gray or grayish white in color. They also have black bars across their wings and tail with prominent white patches throughout.

3. Pay close attention to the shape of a blue bird to distinguish a jay from another blue colored bird. Blue Jays are medium-sized and noted for their crested heads and tend to have a black ring that looks like a necklace around their necks.

4. Verify a blue bird is a jay by looking at the habitat in which it lives. Blue jays prefer an interesting mix of environments, so this might be a little difficult. They can inhabit evergreen forests or mixed woodlands that contain both oak and beech trees or they may choose farmlands, suburbs or calmer urban areas with large trees to nest in.

5. Investigate the areas of the country where blue jays currently reside to further determine if the blue bird you're watching is indeed a blue jay. These birds thus far have stayed east of the Rocky Mountains and though they are slowly encroaching to more westward locales, they tend to be more plentiful in the eastern and central parts of the United States.

6. Buy a bird book that identifies different species of birds to compare the photos in the book to the bird you saw. There is a series of "Stokes Field Guides" and "Stokes Beginner's Guide to Birds" that are helpful. Some of these are separated by region, so you can more quickly access information for the specific area of the country the bird was seen in. You can find these and other books at bookstores and on the Internet. You can also access some bird identification catalogs online, if you don't want to purchase a book.

7. Join a bird watching group. If you'd like to learn more not only about blue jays, but also other species of birds, a group for birders is a good place to meet other people who are interested in birds and can help new birders identify different species.

Tips & Warnings

• Male and female blue jays, unlike some other species, like alike. They only difference is that the females tend to be smaller, otherwise they are identical.
• An angry blue jay not only pecks at other birds, but will also peck at other animals. People have seen jays swoop down on unsuspecting dogs and cats and peck and run. A really bold bird may even try this on a person.
• Blue jays do not play well with others. They are known to prey on other birds' nests including their eggs and their young.

Resources

• Identify Bird Songs
• Bird Books at Best Nest
• Books at Birdwatching.com
• Online Field Guide to Birds
• Identify Blue Jays at What Bird
• Identify Birds at Wild Birds.com