Family Crows and Jays (Corvidae)
Least Concern
Plush-crested Jay (Cyanocorax chrysops)
Taxonomy
French: Geai acahé German: Kappenblaurabe Spanish: Chara moñuda
Taxonomy:
Pica chrysops
Vieillot
, 1818,Paraguay
.
Subspecies and Distribution
C. c. diesingii
Pelzeln, 1856 – N Brazil in extreme E Amazonas and Rondônia#R (right bank of R Madeira); S side of Amazon in W Pará (lower R Tapajós).
C. c. insperatus
O. M. O. Pinto & Camargo, 1961 – SW Pará (restricted to E lower R Tapajós, Serra do Cachimbo) and N Mato Grosso (Serra dos Caiabis)#R, in NC Brazil.
C. c. chrysops
(Vieillot, 1818) – N, E & SE Bolivia (Beni, Cochabamba, Santa Cruz, Chuquisaca and Tarija), SE Brazil (S Mato Grosso and S Minas Gerais S to Rio Grande do Sul), Paraguay, NE Argentina (S to Chaco and Entre Ríos) and NW Uruguay.
C. c. tucumanus
Cabanis, 1883 – NW Argentina (Salta, Tucumán, Catamarca and La Rioja).
Descriptive notes
32–35 cm; 127–170 g. Stiffened feathers on forehead become less stiff on forecrown and crown, with very velvety texture at tips, creating peculiar plush-like cap... read more
Voice
Large repertoire, 23 vocalizations identified, almost all consisting of melodic notes, with the... read more
Habitat
Various types of forest, such as tropical lowland evergreen forest, tropical deciduous forest and... read more
Food and feeding
In three study sites in S Brazil (Paraná), annual diet mainly small invertebrates (80% of records), mostly insects; also some fruits... read more
Breeding
Breeds in Oct–Dec in Paraguay and S Brazil. Communal breeder; with two or three helpers; helpers assist with nest-building and... read more
Movements
Sedentary.
Status and conservation
Not globally threatened (Least Concern). Common to abundant in most parts of range. In Paraná state, in S Brazil, flocks had estimated home range of 20–30 ha.... read more
Previously regarded as conspecific with C. cyanopogon; race insperatus may belong with that species#R. Proposed race interpositus (Alagoas, in NE Brazil) seems to be based on a female of C. cyanopogon in worn subadult plumage, but might be valid. Four subspecies currently recognized.