California Scrub-Jay (Aphelocoma californica), Sacramento County California USA
Formerly thought to be conspecific with the Woodhouse's Scrub-Jay of the Great Basin and Four Corners areas of North America, the California Scrub-Jay lives west of the Sierra/Cascade mountains and generally has brighter colors and a more distinct collar than the more eastern species. They are most often found near oak trees, either oak or mixed oak/conifer woodlands; chaparral, coastal foothills and suburban yards are also good bets for finding this bird. Although they have a rich splash of blue plumage this is not a Blue Jay. The name Blue Jay is more properly applied to the common jay of the eastern part of the continent. The blue coloration of the plumage is not pigment. Hold one of their feathers up to a light source and it will appear brown. The blue color is the result of the structure of the feathers, pockets of air and keratin that reflect only blue wavelengths. This effect is similar to that of the bright throat colors of hummingbirds.
Size: 4608px × 5760px
Location: Sacramento County California USA
Photo credit: © Douglas Herr / Alamy / Afripics
License: Royalty Free
Model Released: No
Keywords: america, animals, aphcal, aphelocoma, birds, blue, california, casj, colorful, corvidae, jay, jays, passeriformes, portrait, sacramento, scrub, scrub-jay, songbirds, states, united, usa, vertical, western, wildlife
