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Steller's Jay (Cyanocitta stelleri)
Birds Around Las Vegas, Wildlife Around Las Vegas
Steller's Jay (Cyanocitta stelleri)

General Description: Steller's Jays (Cyanocitta stelleri) are noisy blue birds with a black crest. The body and wings are blue, and the head, neck, and back are black, and there is a bit of a line (either white or blue) above the eyes and streaks above the bill (blue or white).

Taxonomy: Passeriformes, Corvidae. There were 16 subspecies, but now only 3 with 2 around Las Vegas:

  • Rocky Mountain form (Cyanocitta stelleri macrolopha) of the Southern Great Basin and Southern Rocky Mountains with white on the forehead and white eye lines (Mt. Charleston).
  • Coastal form (Cyanocitta stelleri stelleri) of Pacific Coast, Cascade, and Sierra Nevada Mountains with blue on the forehead and black eye lines (or perhaps no eye lines).
Steller's Jay (Cyanocitta stelleri)
Rocky Mountain Steller's Jay (Cyanocitta stelleri macrolopha);
forehead lines white; eye lines white

Favored Habitat: Around Las Vegas, higher-elevation mountains. Uncommon in the Yellow Pine and higher life zones on Mt. Charleston.

Where to Find: Around Las Vegas, look for Interior Steller's Jays in Kyle Canyon and other higher-elevation areas on Mt. Charleston, especially in campgrounds and picnic areas where they look for food scraps.

Steller's Jay (Cyanocitta stelleri)
Coastal Steller's Jay (Cyanocitta stelleri stelleri);
forehead lines blue; eye lines black (or none)

If you were a tasty bug or a little pine seed in Yosemite, this might be the last face you ever see!

Rocky Mountain Steller's Jay (Cyanocitta stelleri macrolopha): forehead lines white; eye lines white

Steller's Jay (Cyanocitta stelleri)
Steller's Jay; Portal, Arizona
Steller's Jay (Cyanocitta stelleri)
Interior Steller's Jay (Mt. Charleston)
Steller's Jay (Cyanocitta stelleri)
Interior Steller's Jay (Mt Charleston)
Steller's Jay (Cyanocitta stelleri)
Interior Steller's Jay (Mt Charleston)
Steller's Jay (Cyanocitta stelleri)
South Park, CO
Steller's Jay (Cyanocitta stelleri)
Steller's Jay; Portal, Arizona

Pacific Steller's Jay (Cyanocitta stelleri stelleri): forehead lines blue; eye lines black (or none)

Steller's Jay (Cyanocitta stelleri)
Pacific Steller's Jay: forehead lines blue; eye lines black (or none)
Steller's Jay (Cyanocitta stelleri)
Pacific Steller's Jay
Steller's Jay (Cyanocitta stelleri) Steller's Jay (Cyanocitta stelleri)
Steller's Jay (Cyanocitta stelleri) Steller's Jay (Cyanocitta stelleri)
Steller's Jay (Cyanocitta stelleri)
Pacific Steller's Jay juvenile; note yellow lips (Cape Lookout, OR)
Steller's Jay (Cyanocitta stelleri)
Pacific Steller's Jay juvenile; note yellow lips (Cape Lookout, OR)
Note: All distances, elevations, and other facts are approximate.
copyright; Last updated 240120
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