Bird Guide

Plush-crested Jay vs White-throated Magpie-Jay

Plush-crested Jay (Cyanocorax chrysops)

Plush-crested Jay

Cyanocorax chrysops

Medium166 gForest

The plush-crested jay is a medium-sized bird with an overall dark blue colored plumage. It has a cream-yellow underbelly, undertail coverts, underwings, and tail tip, while the upper breast, neck, and head are mostly black. It has a lighter blue on its cheeks and nape, which fades into the darker blue of its body, as well as a spot above its eyes, which are yellow. Its bill is dark blue to black. It has a rounded crest on its head, which it is named for.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Miguel A. Paixão · CC BY 4.0
White-throated Magpie-Jay (Cyanocorax formosus)

White-throated Magpie-Jay

Cyanocorax formosus

Medium210 gWoodland

The white-throated magpie-jay is between 43 and 56 cm (17–22 in) in length and weighs 205 to 213 g (7.2–7.5 oz). The species has a particularly long tail and a slightly curved crest of feathers on the head. The crest is black in the nominate race, but has blue or white margins on the other two subspecies. The nominate race has a white face with a black crown and margin to the face, forming a narrow band around the throat, as well as a small drop below the eye. The black is less extensive in the other subspecies.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Ron Knight from Seaford, East Sussex, United Kingdom · CC BY 2.0

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Photos and recordings are credited to their authors under the licence shown. Full profiles: Plush-crested Jay and White-throated Magpie-Jay.