Species of bird
Azure jay |
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In Curitiba, Brazil |
Conservation status |
Near Threatened (IUCN 3.1)[1] |
Scientific classification |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Aves |
Order: | Passeriformes |
Family: | Corvidae |
Genus: | Cyanocorax |
Species: | C. caeruleus |
Binomial name |
Cyanocorax caeruleus
(Vieillot, 1818) |
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Approximate distribution in green |
The azure jay (Cyanocorax caeruleus) (Brazilian Portuguese: Gralha-azul, meaning blue jackdaw) is a passeriform bird of the crow family, Corvidae. It is found in the Atlantic Forest, especially with Araucaria angustifolia, in south-eastern Brazil (São Paulo to Rio Grande do Sul), far eastern Paraguay and far north-eastern Argentina. It is the state bird of Paraná.
Description
The azure jay has a total length of approximately 40 cm (16 in) and it weighs about 270 g (9.5 oz), and is the largest South American corvid. Its plumage is intensely blue with a contrasting black head and upper chest. Males and females are similar, although the females typically are smaller.
Its breeding season is from October to January. This bird is a social breeder. It lays 2–4 eggs and its nest is made of sticks. It is placed 10–20 m (33–66 ft) above the ground in an Araucaria tree.
Diet
It feeds extensively on the nut-like seeds of Araucaria angustifolia, but it is not strictly limited to this, and also feeds on insects and fruit. Like other corvids, azure jays are highly intelligent. Their communication is complex, consisting of at least 14 distinct vocalizations. They form groups of 4 to 15 individuals that are well organized in hierarchies. These groups remain stable for up to two generations.
See also
References
- Cyanocorax caeruleus - azure jay specimen(s) in the ZMA
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Cyanocorax caeruleus.
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Choughs | Pyrrhocorax | - Alpine chough (P. graculus)
- Red-billed chough (P. pyrrhocorax)
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Treepies | Crypsirina | - Hooded treepie (C. cucullata)
- Black racket-tailed treepie (C. temia)
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Dendrocitta | - Andaman treepie (D. bayleyi)
- Bornean treepie (D. cinerascens)
- Grey treepie (D. formosae)
- Black-faced treepie (D. frontalis)
- White-bellied treepie (D. leucogastra)
- Sumatran treepie (D. occipitalis)
- Rufous treepie (D. vagabunda)
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Platysmurus | - Malayan black magpie (P. leucopterus)
- Bornean black magpie (P. aterrimus)
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Temnurus | - Ratchet-tailed treepie (T. temnurus)
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Oriental magpies | Cissa | - Common green magpie (C. chinensis)
- Indochinese green magpie (C. hypoleuca)
- Bornean green magpie (C. jefferyi)
- Javan green magpie (C. thalassina)
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Urocissa | - Taiwan blue magpie (U. caerulea)
- Red-billed blue magpie (U. erythrorhyncha)
- Yellow-billed blue magpie (U. flavirostris)
- Sri Lanka blue magpie (U. ornata)
- White-winged magpie (U. whiteheadi)
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Old World jays | Garrulus | - Eurasian jay (G. glandarius)
- Lanceolated jay (G. lanceolatus)
- Lidth's jay (G. lidthi)
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Podoces (Ground jays) | - Xinjiang ground jay (P. biddulphi)
- Mongolian ground jay (P. hendersoni)
- Turkestan ground jay (P. panderi)
- Iranian ground jay (P. pleskei)
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Ptilostomus | |
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Stresemann's bushcrow | Zavattariornis | - Stresemann's bushcrow (Z. stresemanni)
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Nutcrackers | Nucifraga | - Spotted nutcracker (N. caryocatactes)
- Clark's nutcracker (N. columbiana)
- Kashmir nutcracker (N. multipunctata)
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Holarctic magpies | Pica | - Black-billed magpie (P. hudsonia)
- Yellow-billed magpie (P. nuttalli)
- Eurasian magpie (P. pica)
- Oriental magpie (P. sericea)
- Maghreb magpie (P. mauritanica)
- Asir magpie (P. asirensis)
- Black-rumped magpie (P. bottanensis)
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True crows | Corvus | - Australian and Melanesian species
- Little crow (C. bennetti)
- Australian raven (C. coronoides)
- Bismarck crow (C. insularis)
- Brown-headed crow (C. fuscicapillus)
- Bougainville crow (C. meeki)
- Little raven (C. mellori)
- New Caledonian crow (C. moneduloides)
- Torresian crow (C. orru)
- Forest raven (C. tasmanicus)
- Grey crow (C. tristis)
- Long-billed crow (C. validus)
- White-billed crow (C. woodfordi)
- Pacific island species
- Hawaiian crow (C. hawaiiensis)
- Mariana crow (C. kubaryi)
- Tropical Asian species
- Slender-billed crow (C. enca)
- Small crow (C. samarensis)
- Palawan crow (C. pusillus)
- Flores crow (C. florensis)
- Large-billed crow (C. macrorhynchos)
- Eastern jungle crow (C. levaillantii)
- Indian jungle crow (C. culminatus)
- House crow (C. splendens)
- Collared crow (C. torquatus)
- Piping crow (C. typicus)
- Banggai crow (C. unicolor)
- Violet crow (C. violaceus)
- Eurasian and North African species
- Mesopotamian crow (C. capellanus)
- Hooded crow (C. cornix)
- Carrion crow (C. corone)
- Rook (C. frugilegus)
- Eastern carrion crow (C. orientalis)
- Fan-tailed raven (C. rhipidurus)
- Brown-necked raven (C. ruficollis)
- Holarctic species
- Common raven (C. corax)
- North and Central American species
- American crow (C. brachyrhynchos)
- Chihuahuan raven (C. cryptoleucus)
- Tamaulipas crow (C. imparatus)
- Jamaican crow (C. jamaicensis)
- White-necked crow (C. leucognaphalus)
- Cuban palm crow (C. minutus)
- Cuban crow (C. nasicus)
- Fish crow (C. ossifragus)
- Hispaniolan palm crow (C. palmarum)
- Sinaloan crow (C. sinaloae)
- Tropical African species
- White-necked raven (C. albicollis)
- Pied crow (C. albus)
- Cape crow (C. capensis)
- Thick-billed raven (C. crassirostris)
- Somali crow (C. edithae)
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Jackdaws | |
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Azure-winged magpies | Cyanopica | - Iberian magpie (C. cooki)
- Azure-winged magpie (C. cyanus)
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Grey jays | Perisoreus | - Canada jay (P. canadensis)
- Siberian jay (P. infaustus)
- Sichuan jay (P. internigrans)
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New World jays | Aphelocoma (Scrub jays) | - California scrub jay (A. californica)
- Island scrub jay (A. insularis)
- Woodhouse's scrub jay (A. woodhouseii)
- Florida scrub jay (A. coerulescens)
- Transvolcanic jay (A. ultramarina)
- Unicolored jay (A. unicolor)
- Mexican jay (A. wollweberi)
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Calocitta (Magpie-Jays) | - Black-throated magpie-jay (C. colliei)
- White-throated Magpie-jay (C. formosa)
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Cyanocitta | - Blue jay (C. cristata)
- Steller's jay (C. stelleri)
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Cyanocorax | - Black-chested jay (C. affinis)
- Purplish-backed jay (C. beecheii)
- Azure jay (C. caeruleus)
- Cayenne jay (C. cayanus)
- Plush-crested jay (C. chrysops)
- Curl-crested jay (C. cristatellus)
- Purplish jay (C. cyanomelas)
- White-naped jay (C. cyanopogon)
- Tufted jay (C. dickeyi)
- Azure-naped jay (C. heilprini)
- Bushy-crested jay (C. melanocyaneus)
- Brown jay (C. morio)
- White-tailed jay (C. mystacalis)
- San Blas jay (C. sanblasianus)
- Violaceous jay (C. violaceus)
- Green jay (C. ynca)
- Yucatan jay (C. yucatanicus)
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Cyanolyca | - Silvery-throated jay (C. argentigula)
- Black-collared jay (C. armillata)
- Azure-hooded jay (C. cucullata)
- White-throated jay (C. mirabilis)
- Dwarf jay (C. nana)
- Beautiful jay (C. pulchra)
- Black-throated jay (C. pumilo)
- Turquoise jay (C. turcosa)
- White-collared jay (C. viridicyana)
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Gymnorhinus | - Pinyon jay (G. cyanocephalus)
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