Blue Jay
Cyanocitta cristata
Family Corvidae

Characteristics:
* Bird large and blue, showy, with a crested head and white spots on its wings and tail, and a black ring around its neck.
* Body and tail length: 11-12 1/2".

Natural History:
* Habitat: Oak and pine forests, glades, gardens, and towns. Nests made of sticks and lined with roots, built in branch crotches and close to tree trunks.
* Range: Southern Canada and the United States, east of the Rockies.
* Voice: A loud, harsh jay, sometimes a musical queedle queedle, and assorted other notes.
* Behavior: Feeds on vegetation, insects, occasionally fish or frogs. Eggs greenish-gray, with olive or brown patches.
* Native.

Connections!
* "We er sorter po'ly, Sis Tempy, I'm 'blige ter you. You know w'at de jay-bird say ter der squinch-owl! 'I'm sickly but sassy'."
-Joel Chandler Harris, 1848-1908