How to Identify aPinyon Jay
Gymnorhinus cyanocephalus · 10.2–11.4 in (26–29 cm)
Male vs. female
Male
Uniform dull grayish-blue with a slightly paler throat, a long spike-like bill and a notably short tail. Sexes look alike.
Female
Identical to the male but slightly duller.
Male photo: ALAN SCHMIERER from near Patagonia, AZ, USA / Wikimedia, CC0 · Second photo: Seabamirum from Ithaca / Wikimedia, CC BY 2.0
Field marks
- Uniform dusty blue with no white or black markings
- Short tail giving a crow-like silhouette
- Long, straight, sharply pointed bill
- Almost always in large flocks
Similar species
What it sounds like
A high, nasal, laughing "kaw-kaw" and rolling calls given constantly by the flock.
Behaviour that gives it away
Caches millions of pinyon seeds as a flock, and its nesting is timed to the pine crop rather than the calendar.
Habitat & range
Pinyon-juniper woodland and adjacent pine forest in the interior West.
When you'll see it
Present all year in western and southwestern North America.
What it eats
Pinyon pine seeds above all, plus insects and berries.
Did you know?
A single flock can cache over four million pinyon seeds in a season, and the trees depend on the jay to plant them.
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