Brown Jay

Beautiful Birds of Belize Blog – Post #16

By Jim Gain

4/25/2023

  • Scientific Name: Psilorhinus morio
  • Name in Spanish (Mexico): Chara Pea
  • ABA 4-Letter Bird Code: BRJA
  • Family: Corvidae – Crows, Jays, and Magpies
  • Order: Passeriformes – Perching Birds
Brown Jay Image © Jim Gain

Brown Jays (Cyanocorax morio) are relatively large, and predominately are dark brown with a pale buff brown or pale white vent and belly. They are found throughout Central America, including Belize. Brown Jays are highly social and form tight-knit groups of up to 20 individuals that work together to defend territories and locate food.

Brown Jay Image © Jim Gain

In Belize, Brown Jays are found in a variety of habitats, from open woodlands and savannas to dense forests. They are omnivorous, feeding on a variety of fruits, insects, and small vertebrates.

Brown Jay Image © Jim Gain

During the breeding season, which typically occurs from March to June, Brown Jays build cup-shaped nests in trees or shrubs and lay up to five eggs. Both parents take turns incubating the eggs and caring for the young. Despite being common and widespread, the Brown Jay is a beautiful and fascinating bird that plays an important role in the ecology of Belize.

>> Next Post on Friday, 4/28/2023 – White-wiskered Puffbird

Below are the most recent Beautiful Birds of Belize Blog Posts

Leave a Reply

Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in:

WordPress.com Logo

You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. Log Out /  Change )

Facebook photo

You are commenting using your Facebook account. Log Out /  Change )

Connecting to %s

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.