Island Scrub Jay
Encyclopedia
The Island Scrub-Jay or Island Jay is one of the species
of Aphelocoma
(scrub-jays) native to North America
and is endemic
to Santa Cruz Island
off the coast of Southern California
. It is closely related to the "California" Scrub-Jay - the coastal population of Western Scrub-Jay found on the adjacent mainland (Rice et al. 2003 ) - but differs in being larger, more brightly colored, and having a markedly stouter bill. The large bill size is related to its diet, incorporating the thick-shelled acorn
s of the Island Oak
(Quercus tomentella). They will bury, or cache, the acorns in the fall and may eat them months later. They also eat insects, spiders, snakes, lizards, mice and other birds' eggs and nestlings.
Santa Cruz Island is run as a preserve, partly by The Nature Conservancy
and partly by Channel Islands National Park
. The Island Scrub-Jay can often be seen right at Prisoner's Cove, where many of the boats visiting the Island drop off and pick up passengers. This species is plentiful; it is classed as near-threatened by the IUCN mainly to reflect that a disaster, disease, or invasive species
could quickly kill off the thriving population as it is limited to a single island. The Island Scrub-jay is not known to have occurred anywhere else historically, and no fossil
remains have been found on the well-researched neighboring islands (Curry & Delaney 2002 ).
Females lay 3 to 5 eggs. Incubation lasts approximately 20 days. These jays are monogamous and, unlike some other jays, are not cooperative breeders. Both sexes build a nest 3 to 25 feet high.
The Island Scrub-Jay's genus name, Aphelocoma, comes from the from Latin
ized Ancient Greek
apheles- (from ἀφελής-) "simple" + Latin coma (from Greek kome κόμη) "hair", in reference to the lack of striped or banded feathers in this genus, compared to other jays. The species name, insularis, comes from the Latin
for "from an island".
Species
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
of Aphelocoma
Aphelocoma
The passerine birds of the genus Aphelocomainclude the scrub-jays and relatives. They are New World jays found in Mexico, western Central America and the western United States, with an outlying population in Florida...
(scrub-jays) native to North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
and is endemic
Endemic (ecology)
Endemism is the ecological state of being unique to a defined geographic location, such as an island, nation or other defined zone, or habitat type; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsewhere. For example, all species of lemur are endemic to the...
to Santa Cruz Island
Santa Cruz Island
Santa Cruz Island was the largest privately owned island off the continental United States, but is currently part-owned by the National Park service . The island, located off the coast of California, is long and from wide...
off the coast of Southern California
Southern California
Southern California is a megaregion, or megapolitan area, in the southern area of the U.S. state of California. Large urban areas include Greater Los Angeles and Greater San Diego. The urban area stretches along the coast from Ventura through the Southland and Inland Empire to San Diego...
. It is closely related to the "California" Scrub-Jay - the coastal population of Western Scrub-Jay found on the adjacent mainland (Rice et al. 2003 ) - but differs in being larger, more brightly colored, and having a markedly stouter bill. The large bill size is related to its diet, incorporating the thick-shelled acorn
Acorn
The acorn, or oak nut, is the nut of the oaks and their close relatives . It usually contains a single seed , enclosed in a tough, leathery shell, and borne in a cup-shaped cupule. Acorns vary from 1–6 cm long and 0.8–4 cm broad...
s of the Island Oak
Island Oak
Quercus tomentella, the Island Oak, also the Island Live Oak or Channel Islands Oak, is an oak in the section Protobalanus.-Distribution:...
(Quercus tomentella). They will bury, or cache, the acorns in the fall and may eat them months later. They also eat insects, spiders, snakes, lizards, mice and other birds' eggs and nestlings.
Santa Cruz Island is run as a preserve, partly by The Nature Conservancy
The Nature Conservancy
The Nature Conservancy is a US charitable environmental organization that works to preserve the plants, animals, and natural communities that represent the diversity of life on Earth by protecting the lands and waters they need to survive....
and partly by Channel Islands National Park
Channel Islands National Park
- External links :* Official site: * *...
. The Island Scrub-Jay can often be seen right at Prisoner's Cove, where many of the boats visiting the Island drop off and pick up passengers. This species is plentiful; it is classed as near-threatened by the IUCN mainly to reflect that a disaster, disease, or invasive species
Invasive species
"Invasive species", or invasive exotics, is a nomenclature term and categorization phrase used for flora and fauna, and for specific restoration-preservation processes in native habitats, with several definitions....
could quickly kill off the thriving population as it is limited to a single island. The Island Scrub-jay is not known to have occurred anywhere else historically, and no fossil
Fossil
Fossils are the preserved remains or traces of animals , plants, and other organisms from the remote past...
remains have been found on the well-researched neighboring islands (Curry & Delaney 2002 ).
Females lay 3 to 5 eggs. Incubation lasts approximately 20 days. These jays are monogamous and, unlike some other jays, are not cooperative breeders. Both sexes build a nest 3 to 25 feet high.
The Island Scrub-Jay's genus name, Aphelocoma, comes from the from Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
ized Ancient Greek
Ancient Greek
Ancient Greek is the stage of the Greek language in the periods spanning the times c. 9th–6th centuries BC, , c. 5th–4th centuries BC , and the c. 3rd century BC – 6th century AD of ancient Greece and the ancient world; being predated in the 2nd millennium BC by Mycenaean Greek...
apheles- (from ἀφελής-) "simple" + Latin coma (from Greek kome κόμη) "hair", in reference to the lack of striped or banded feathers in this genus, compared to other jays. The species name, insularis, comes from the Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
for "from an island".
External links
- Island Scrub-Jay - Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center
- Audubon WatchList: Island Scrub Jay. Retrieved 2007-FEB-26.