Cayenne Jay
Cyanocorax cayanus
The Cayenne Jay (Cyanocorax cayanus) is a rare crows, jays, and magpi found in 5 countries, weighing about 175 g. The Cayenne jay is a species of bird in the family Corvidae.










About the Cayenne Jay
The Cayenne jay is a species of bird in the family Corvidae. It is found in Brazil, French Guiana, Guyana, Suriname, and Venezuela. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest, subtropical or tropical dry shrubland, and heavily degraded former forest.
Text adapted from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
How to identify it
The cayenne jay is a medium sized jay, roughly 33 cm (13 in) long. It has a generally purplish back with white undersides. Its back and tail are a purplish-brown, with a white tail-tip. Its wings fade from the purplish-brown of the back to a darker purplish-blue. Its neck is a sooty grey, fading to white on its undersides. Its face and throat are generally black, with white spots above and below the eye, and along the malar. The edges of these white spots fade to a mauve colour. It has a short black crest on the top of its head.
Where it lives
When to see it
Best months: January, February, March, April, May, July, August, September, October, November, December, with peak activity in February. It is a resident species across most of its range.
Easily confused with
Quick questions
- How do you identify a Cayenne Jay?
- The cayenne jay is a medium sized jay, roughly 33 cm (13 in) long. Full identification notes are on this page.
- How big is a Cayenne Jay?
- The Cayenne Jay is a medium sized bird weighing about 175 g.
- Where can you see a Cayenne Jay?
- The Cayenne Jay occurs in 5 countries, including Guyana, Venezuela, Suriname, Brazil and French Guiana.
- What birds look similar to a Cayenne Jay?
- The Cayenne Jay is most easily confused with the Purplish-backed Jay, the Tufted Jay and the Azure-naped Jay.
- Is the Cayenne Jay endangered?
- The Cayenne Jay is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List.
Learn the Cayenne Jay for real
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