Crows, jays and magpies | Corvidae

Kraaiachtigen | Córvidos | Crows, jays and magpies

In this region the family is represented by jays alone: the guide includes twelve species in two genera, the small, blue Cyanolyca jays of cloud forest on the Andean slopes and the larger Cyanocorax jays of lowland forest, forest edge and dry woodland, such as the White-tailed Jay of the Tumbesian region and the green-and-yellow Inca Jay of montane forest. Crows and magpies are absent. Jays have a powerful all-purpose bill, bristly feathers over the nostrils and strong legs used for walking as much as hopping. They eat almost anything, hide food for later and remember where they put it; the family has the largest brains for body size of any bird. True song is absent — the calls are mostly harsh and grating — but some species mimic other sounds. They often move through the forest in noisy family groups, pairs stay together for a long time, they build a nest of twigs, and the sexes look alike.