Introductory
WILDLIFE SPECIES: Aphelocoma coerulescens | Scrub Jay 



ABBREVIATION : 
APCO

COMMON NAMES : 
   scrub jay


TAXONOMY : 
The currently accepted scientific name for the scrub jay is Aphelocoma
coerulescens (Bosc).  Subspecies differences are based on size,
coloration, and distribution.  Subspecies of scrub jay are as follows
[1,3]:

     Aphelocoma coerulescens ssp. coerulescens (Bosc)- Florida scrub jay
     A. coerulescens ssp. cana- Eagle Mountain srub jay
     A. coerulescens ssp. superciliosa (Strickland)- long-tailed scrub jay
     A. coerulescens ssp. oocleptica Swarth- Niasco scrub jay
     A. coerulescens ssp. californica (Vigors)- California scrub jay
     A. coerulescens ssp. woodhouseii (Baird)- Woodhouse's scrub jay
     A. coerulescens ssp. insularis Henshaw- Santa Cruz scrub jay
     A. coerulescens ssp. obscura Anthony- Belding's scrub jay
     A. coerulescens ssp. cactophila Huey- desert California scrub jay
     A. coerulescens ssp. hypoleuca Ridgway- Xantus' scrub jay
     A. coerulescens ssp. texana Ridgway- Texas scrub jay

This report deals mainly with the Florida scrub jay, as information on
the other subspecies is sparse.


ORDER : 
Passeriformes

CLASS : 
Bird

FEDERAL LEGAL STATUS : 
See OTHER STATUS

OTHER STATUS : 
The Florida scrub jay is federally [26] and state [25] listed as
threatened.  Populations are noted on The Blue List as down to greatly
down in Florida [24].  The Eagle Mountain scrub jay is federally listed
as a Category 2 subspecies [19].


COMPILED BY AND DATE : 
S. A. Snyder, June 1992


LAST REVISED BY AND DATE : 
NO-ENTRY


AUTHORSHIP AND CITATION : 
Snyder, S. A. 1992. Aphelocoma coerullescens. In: Remainder of Citation

WILDLIFE DISTRIBUTION AND OCCURRENCE
WILDLIFE SPECIES: Aphelocoma coerulescens | Scrub Jay 



GENERAL DISTRIBUTION : 
All but one subspecies of the scrub jay inhabit the West Coast and
southwestern United States.  The Florida scrub jay is restricted to the
Florida Panhandle and central Florida.  The two major populations are at
Cape Canaveral/Merritt Island and the Ocala National Forest, Florida
[9].  One confirmed sighting of a scrub jay was noted in southern
British Columbia [8].  Distributions by subspecies are listed below
[1,3]:

     A. c. ssp. coerulescens - central Florida including the panhandle; 
                               occasionally Jekyll Island, Georgia
     A. c. ssp. superciliosa - southern Washington and Oregon;
                               from San Francisco to the San Joaquin
                               Valley, California
     A. c. ssp. oocleptica - from San Francisco to Humboldt, California
     A. c. ssp. californica - coastal southern California
     A. c. ssp. woodhouseii - southern Oregon, Idaho, Wyoming; western
                              Colorado and Oklahoma, Arizona, Texas,
                              Mexico; occasionally into Nebraska and 
                              Kansas
     A. c. ssp. insularis - Santa Cruz Island, California
     A. c. ssp. obscura - northwest Baja California
     A. c. ssp. cactophila - central Baja California
     A. c. ssp. hypoleuca - southern California from the coast to the
                            high mountains
     A. c. ssp. texana - central Texas
    


ECOSYSTEMS : 
FRES12 Longleaf-slash pine
FRES14 Oak-pine
FRES19 Aspen-birch
FRES20 Douglas-fir
FRES21 Ponderosa pine
FRES27 Redwood
FRES28 Western hardwoods
FRES29 Sagebrush
FRES30 Desert shrub
FRES31 Shinnery
FRES32 Texas savanna
FRES33 Southwestern shrubsteppe
FRES34 Chaparral-mountain shrub
FRES35 Pinyon-juniper
FRES40 Desert grasslands


STATES : 


    
AR
    
CA
    
CO
    
FL
    
ID
    
KS
    
NE
    
NV
    
NM
    
OK
    
OR
    
TX
    
UT
    
WA
    
WY







    
MEXICO
    




BLM PHYSIOGRAPHIC REGIONS : 
    2  Cascade Mountains
    3  Southern Pacific Border
    4  Sierrra Mountains
    5  Columbia Plateau
   10  Wyoming Basin
   11  Southern Rocky Mountains
   12  Colorado Plateau
   13  Rocky Mountain Piedmont
   14  Great Plains


KUCHLER PLANT ASSOCIATIONS : 
   K006  Redwood forest
   K010  Ponderosa shrub forest
   K011  Western ponderosa forest
   K012  Douglas-fir forest
   K018  Pine - Douglas-fir forest
   K023  Juniper - pinyon woodland
   K024  Juniper steppe woodland
   K026  Oregon oakwoods
   K029  California mixed evergreen forest
   K030  California oakwoods
   K031  Oak - juniper woodland
   K033  Chaparral
   K034  Montane chaparral
   K037  Mountain-mahogany - oak scrub
   K038  Great Basin sagebrush
   K040  Saltbush - greasewood
   K043  Palo verde - cactus shrub
   K045  Ceniza shrub
   K046  Desert: vegetation largely lacking
   K056  Wheatgrass - needlegrass shrubsteppe
   K058  Grama - tobosa shrubsteppe
   K059  Trans-Pecos shrub savanna
   K079  Palmetto prairie
   K081  Oak savanna
   K084  Cross Timbers
   K086  Juniper - oak savanna
   K087  Mesquite - oak savanna
   K111  Oak - hickory - pine forest
   K112  Southern mixed forest
   K115  Sand pine scrub


SAF COVER TYPES : 
    63  Cottonwood
    69  Sand pine
    71  Longleaf pine - scrub oak
    72  Southern scrub oak
    84  Slash pine
    85  Slash pine - hardwood
    89  Live oak
   111  South Florida slash pine
   210  Interior Douglas-fir
   217  Aspen
   222  Black cottonwood - willow
   229  Pacific Douglas-fir
   232  Redwood
   233  Oregon white oak
   234  Douglas-fir - tanoak - Pacific madrone
   235  Cottonwood - willow
   237  Interior ponderosa pine
   239  Pinyon - juniper
   241  Western live oak
   243  Sierra Nevada mixed conifer
   244  Pacific ponderosa pine - Douglas-fir
   248  Knobcone pine
   249  Canyon live oak
   250  Blue oak - Digger pine
   255  California coast live oak


SRM (RANGELAND) COVER TYPES : 
NO-ENTRY


PLANT COMMUNITIES : 
In Florida the scrub jay lives in sand pine (Pinus clausa) communities
with bluestem (Andropogon floridanus) and panic grass (Panicum
patentifolium) understories.  The scrub jay also inhabits the xeric oak
communities of Florida.  These communities include myrtle oak (Quercus
myrtifolia), Chapman oak (Q. chapmanii), and sand live oak (Q.
virginiana geminata) [21].  In coastal California, the scrub jay
inhabits chaparral communities of chamise (Adenostoma fasciculatum),
hoary leaf ceanothus (Ceanothus crassifolius), and California scrub oak
(Q. dumosa) [17].  The scrub jay also inhabits the redwood (Sequoia
sempervirens), scrub oak, and pinyon (Pinus edulis)/juniper (Juniperus
spp.) forests of the West.  In the Great Basin the scrub jay inhabits
montane scrub communities of Gambel oak (Q. gambelii) and
mountain-mahogany (Cercocarpus spp.) [7].


REFERENCES : 
NO-ENTRY

BIOLOGICAL DATA AND HABITAT REQUIREMENTS
WILDLIFE SPECIES: Aphelocoma coerulescens | Scrub Jay 



TIMING OF MAJOR LIFE HISTORY EVENTS : 
Courtship - As early as January (for Florida subspecies); 
            build communal nests shortly after, from February to June;
            mate for life
Clutch - lay three to five eggs between March and July; will lay 
         one successful clutch per season; 17 days incubation
Maturation - 1 year, but young birds remain with parents for an average
             of 2 years (up to 5 years) to help raise subsequent
             clutches
Lifespan - average of 4.5 years; may live up to 11 years [9,18,21,23]


PREFERRED HABITAT : 
Florida scrub jays prefer dense thickets of sand pine scrub, oak
flatwoods, recently burned sites, and shore dune thickets.  Thickets,
however, must have many open, sandy places for birds to feed [21].
Florida scrub jays will build nests in myrtle oak, Chapman oak, and
scrub palmetto (Serenoa spp.) but not in dense sand pine.  Florida scrub
jay populations are usually higher in oak cover between 3 and 6 feet
(1-3 m) high.  They will decrease in number with an increase in grass
cover and woody cover (other than oak) that is less than 3 feet (1 m)
high [9].  Scrub jays tend to build their nests within 1.5 to 7.5 feet
(0.5-2.5 m) of the ground [23].  In the West scrub jays build their
nests in pinyon pine (Pinus spp.) and other scrubby vegetation [10].
They also frequent willow-lined (Salix spp.) streambanks and scrubby
mountain foothills [18].  During winter they sometimes are found near
cultivated fields.  Scrub jays have been reported at elevations of 6,000
to 9,000 feet (1,829-2,743 m) in Colorado [18].  In other areas of the
Great Basin, scrub jays are found from 7,550 to 9,000 feet (2,300-2,750
m) in elevation [7].


COVER REQUIREMENTS : 
Florida scrub jays nest in low, dense thickets of oak or wax myrtle
(Myrica cerifera) [21,23]; some thickets, however, may be too dense for
nesting.  These thickets must be interspersed with sandy openings for
feeding.  Florida scrub jays rarely use habitats with greater than 50
percent canopy cover [9].  Optimum habitat has been listed as oaks 1.5
to 6 feet (1-3 m) high covering 50 to 75 percent of the home range,
interspersed with bareground or vegetation less than 5.9 inches (15 cm)
high covering 10 to 30 percent of the home range [9].


FOOD HABITS : 
Scrub jays eat a variety of foods from grains, acorns, fruits, and nuts
to frogs, lizards, arthropods, moths, bees, spiders, turtles, and mice
[2,9,10,18,20].  Acorns and pinyon pine seeds are two of the most
important plant foods.


PREDATORS : 
The biggest threat to the Florida scrub jay is habitat destruction by
man [9].  Predators include many species of snake, crows, magpies, and
other jays (Corvids), bobcat (Felis rufus), and the grey fox (Urocyon
cinereoargenteus) [21].


MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS : 
Because it caches nuts, the scrub jay can have a significant impact on
the regeneration of pinyon pine and its distribution and density [2,13].

In Florida the scrub jay does not disperse far from where it hatches.
This can lead to habitat saturation, where no available nesting space
opens for young breeding birds.  Habitat destruction, by the birds
themselves, can result from this overcrowding [9,21].

Clearcut sand pine stands in Florida tend to recover faster than burned
stands; thus scrub jays can recolonize clearcut stands more quickly than
burned stands [9].


REFERENCES : 
NO-ENTRY

FIRE EFFECTS AND USE
WILDLIFE SPECIES: Aphelocoma coerulescens | Scrub Jay 



DIRECT FIRE EFFECTS ON ANIMALS : 
Fires during the nesting season may destroy scrub jay nests.


HABITAT RELATED FIRE EFFECTS : 
Fire-destroyed habitat can force scrub jays to relocate their home
ranges temporarily [21].  However, scrub oaks, when burned, are quick to
resprout, and usually are not replaced by southern pines, which may be
unsuitable for Florida scrub jay habitat [9].  Fire exclusion from
Florida scrub jay habitat allows sand pine and other species to become
too dense for bird populations [9].  Too frequent fires can also kill
oaks, which are needed for food and shelter [5].  A prescribed burn in
Nevada did not enhance scrub jay populations; scrub jay was the only
"ground-dependent" bird not to increase following the burn [15].  Fires
on the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, Florida, also did not
benefit scrub jay populations [6].  The authors suggested that area
sample sizes may have biased this conclusion.

Scrub jay populations did not show a significant increase following a
late November prescribed fire in oak/palmetto palm scrub in central
Florida [5].  Scrub jay densities were higher in the mechanically
cleared oak scrub types than in the burned oak/palmetto types.  However,
the beneficial effects of fire for scrub jays may take a long time to
become apparent; Florida scrub jays have been known to decrease in
fire-excluded areas [5].  See Quercus virginiana and other Quercus
write-ups in FEIS database.


FIRE USE : 
Fire is essential for scrub jay habitat maintenance.  Some authors have
recommended burning Florida scrub oak stands at the very least every 20
to 30 years, depending on the growth rate of the oak [9].  Fire can be
used to create and maintain stand openings essential for feeding [16].
In addition fires can rejuvenate decadent stands for nesting and food
production.  Cox [9] recommended following these parameters when using
fire as a tool for Florida scrub jay habitat maintenance:

(1)  leave scrub oaks less than 1.5 feet (1 m) high
(2)  burn oaks over 10.5 feet (3.5 m) high every 3 to 5 years 
     maximum, and 15 to 20 years minimum
(3)  leave adequate habitat while the burned area recovers
(4)  burn in a mosaic to provide dense cover for nesting and
     create open space for feeding
(5)  if burning on a 10-year cycle, then burn 10 percent of the total
     area every year
(6)  if firebreaks are necessary, habitat should be divided into 25- to
     50-acre (10-20 ha) parcels
(7)  if less than 5 percent of the area is bare ground, burn when oaks
     reach 6 to 9 feet (2-3 m) in height; if greater than 15 percent of
     the area is bare ground, burn when oaks reach 9 to 10.5 feet 
     (3-3.5 m) in height


REFERENCES : 
NO-ENTRY

REFERENCES
WILDLIFE SPECIES: Aphelocoma coerulescens | Scrub Jay 



REFERENCES : 

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       Experiment Station: 86-88.  [13714]

 .  Balda, Russell P. 1987. Avian impacts on pinyon-juniper woodlands. In:
       Everett, Richard L., compiler. Proceedings--pinyon-juniper conference;
       1986 January 13-16; Reno, NV. Gen. Tech. Rep. INT-215. Ogden, UT: U.S.
       Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Intermountain Research
       Station: 525-533.  [4993]

 .  Bent, Arthur Cleveland. 1964. Life histories of North American thrushes,
       kinglets, and their allies. New York: Dover Publications, Inc. 452 p. 
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 .  Bernard, Stephen R.; Brown, Kenneth F. 1977. Distribution of mammals,
       reptiles, and amphibians by BLM physiographic regions and A.W. Kuchler's
       associations for the eleven western states. Tech. Note 301. Denver, CO:
       U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management. 169 p. 
       [434]

 .  Breininger, D. R.; Schmalzer, P. A. 1990. Effects of fire and
       disturbance on plants and birds in Florida oak/ palmetto scrub
       community. American Midland Naturalist. 123(1): 64-74.  [9875]

 .  Breininger, David R.; Smith, Rebecca B. 1992. Relationships between fire
       and bird density in coastal scrub and slash pine flatwoods in Florida.
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 .  Brown, David E. 1982. Great Basin montane scrubland. In: Brown, David
       E., ed.  Biotic communities of the American Southwest--United States and
       Mexico. Desert Plants. 4(1-4): 83-84.  [8890]

 .  Campbell, R. Wayne. 1986. First Canadian record of the scrub jay
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 .  Cox, Jeffrey A. 1984. Distribution, habitat, and social organization of
       the Florida scrub jay, with a discussion of the coopertive breeding in
       New World jays. Gainesville, FL: University of Florida. 271 p.
       Dissertation.  [17410]

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.  Eyre, F. H., ed. 1980. Forest cover types of the United States and
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       ecosystems. Agric. Handb. 475. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of
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.  Hall, Lisa; Balda, Russell P. 1988. The role of scrub jays in pinyon
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       Collins, CO: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky
       Mountain Forest and Range Experiment Station. 36 p.  [16755]

.  Kuchler, A. W. 1964. Manual to accompany the map of potential vegetation
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       John J., eds. Ecosystems of Florida. Orlando, FL: University of Central
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.  Pase, Charles P. 1982. Californian (coastal) chaparral. In: Brown, David
       E., ed.  Biotic communities of the American Southwest--United States and
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.  Terres, John K. 1980. The Audubon Society encyclopedia of North American
       birds. New York: Alfred A. Knopf. 1109 p.  [16195]

.  U.S. Department of the Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service. 1994.
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.  Vander Kloet, S. P.; Austin-Smith, P. J. 1986. Energetics, patterns and
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Related categories for Wildlife Species: Aphelocoma coerulescens | Scrub Jay