Gray Jay    Perisoreus canadensis

Migratory Status: Resident

PIF Population Estimate: 16 000 000

Percent of western hemisphere population breeding in boreal forest: 73%

BAM Effective Detection Radius (m) : 68.32

PIF Maximum Detection Distance (m) : 125

Canadian BBS Population trend: -0.7 n.s. (-2.3 to 0.9)

Life History

The Gray Jay is a tame, curious and intelligent bird of boreal and montane forests. Gray Jays are bold and will readily approach humans, waiting for fallen food scraps or to be fed out of hand. At times, they will steal food. Breeding is confined to coniferous-dominated forests across Canada and Alaska. They breed from the treeline, south to the agricultural lands of the Canadian prairies and the urban areas of southern Ontario. They are found throughout most of the mountain ranges of the west as far south as New Mexico. Across their range, Gray Jays prefer forest stands that contain spruce (Picea spp.).

Sexes are visually indistinguishable; both have light gray underparts, which contrast with darker upperparts. The head is whitish except for a tawny patch between the bill and eyes, and a black crown patch, eyes and bill. Colouration varies geographically with lighter-coloured birds occurring in the western mountain ranges. Juveniles are sooty gray, typically darker towards the head with a light coloured malar stripe, or “moustache”.

Gray Jays nest in late winter, sometimes as early as late-February, when deep snow is still present and temperatures are well below zero. At times, eggs are successfully incubated at temperatures as low as -30° C. Gray Jays are able to accomplish this feat due, in part, to their habitat of caching food. The bird coats its food with sticky saliva and then adheres the morsels in small niches among trees, logs, stumps, mounds of moss, or foliage. Some individuals may hide stored food by covering it with pieces of bark, lichen, or other items. The Gray Jay has some ability to remember the location of these stored caches and perhaps an awareness of the overall status of each larder.

Calls are variable and can be quite melodic or a medley of short, hoarse chatters, screams, squawks and scolds. Musical calls are variable and throaty and include, “chuf chuf weef” or “kreh kreh kreh weeoo” that are typically combined with shorter calls. Gray Jays mimic other bird species, including potential avian predators. The reason for this behaviour is unclear; mimicking predators could serve as a warning to other group members or perhaps a tactic to confuse the predator itself.

Reference(s)

Strickland, D., and H. Ouellet. 1993. Gray Jay (Perisoreus canadensis), The Birds of North America Online, . A. Poole, Ed. Ithaca: Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology; Retrieved from The Birds of North America Online database: http://bna.birds.cornell.edu/bna/species/040