23

Eurasian Jay (Garrulus glandarius) Alternate name(s): "Jay" German name(s): "Eichelhäher" Size: 32-35 cm; wing span: 52-58 cm Body mass: 140-190 g Wing loading [g/cm2]: 0.29-0.30

Europe: Family Group 23 Family Group 23 Table Eurasian Nutcracker Red-billed Chough Alpine Chough Eurasian Jay Western Jackdaw Hooded Crow Carrion Crow Rook Common Raven Thumbnails page Family group table Index of bird names European birds home page

Description     Classification     Distribution     Sightings     Photos     Breeding     Nest     Eggs     Behaviour     Food     Call/s

Physical description Click here for a physical description The various races of Eurasian Jays show variations in their plumages. The central European nominate race "glandarius" has a black-and-white streaked cap, rufous cheeks, black patches under the eyes and a greyish throat. Most of the rest of the plumage, including the wing coverts, is pale greyish-brown, except the flight feathers, which are boldly patterned black and white, with prominent light-blue and black wing patches. The rump and undertail coverts are white; the tail is black. Eurasian Jays have yellowish-white irises, a stout dark-grey bill and flesh-coloured legs and feet.

Taxonomy, classification See Eurasian Jay at Wikipedia .

Range, habitat, finding this species Click here for information on habitat and range The overall distribution of this species can be assessed, and specific locations where birds have been spotted can be found, based on individual sighting reports submitted by birdwatchers to ebird.org . The global distribution of the Eurasian Jay is available HERE . There are a whole plethora of races of Eurasian Jays (33 in total). Together, they populate almost all of Europe (except the subpolar regions of Scandinavia), the Atlas main range in northern Africa, parts of the Middle East, a swath spanning the width of central Asia, and all of Japan and Korea and parts of China in far-eastern Asia. In addition, they are also found in South-East Asia, from northern Thailand to southern China, roughly to the East of the Himalaya mountain range, and along the northern fringe of the Himalayas. In Europe Eurasian Jays are found throughout the continent and the British Isles, but not parts of northern Scandinavia and north-western Russia. Eurasian Jays can live in a variety of habitats. The European race/s have a preference for forest and woodland.

Sightings Click here for sighting information Race "glandarius" D. Wilczynska reports seeing Eurasian Jays, race "glandarius", regularly in the area of Ostrow Mazowiecka, Masovia, Poland. M. Thomas and H. Dahlem-Senger report spotting Eurasian Jays, race "glandarius", semi-regularly in and around Eltville, Hessen, Germany. G. Pinelas reports spotting a Eurasian Jay, race "glandarius", in Reboleira, Lisbon, Portugal, in January 2019. J. Pires reports finding Eurasian Jays, race "glandarius", in Costa Caparica, Almada, Portugal, in 2014 and occasionally, throughout the year, in Mora, Evora, Portugal. G. Normand found a Eurasian Jay, race "glandarius", at Pere Lachaise cemetery, 20th district, Paris, France, in November 2020. Others were found by H. Dahlem-Senger in Labeaume, Ardeche, Auvergne-Rhone-Alpes, France, in October 2025. A. Sarok spotted a Eurasian Jay, race "glandarius", in Vojvodina, Serbia, in the timeframe 2010-2024. In the past we used to see Eurasian Jays, race "glandarius", regularly in the Eifel, Rheinland-Pfalz, and in forests and woodland in the Saarland, Germany.

Photos

Race "glandarius"

ADULT

Sex unknown

Frontal view of a Eurasian Jay (photo courtesy of H. Dahlem-Senger)
[Labeaume, Ardeche, Auvergne-Rhone-Alpes, France, October 2025]

Frontal view of a Eurasian Jay getting all excited in the bathtub and in the process raising its crest
(photo courtesy of G. Pinelas)
[Reboleira, Lisbon, Portugal, January 2019]

Near-frontal view of a Eurasian Jay (photo courtesy of G. Pinelas)
[Reboleira, Lisbon, Portugal, January 2019]

Near-frontal/ventral view of a Eurasian Jay (photo courtesy of G. Normand)
[Pere Lachaise cemetery, 20th district, Paris, France, November 2020]

Near-lateral view of a Eurasian Jay (photo courtesy of D. Wilczynska)
[Ostrow Mazowiecka, Masovia, Poland, November 2015]

Near-lateral view of a Eurasian Jay (photo courtesy of M. Thomas)
[Eltville, Hessen, Germany, January 2019]

Lateral view of a Eurasian Jay looking towards the observer (photo courtesy of A. Sarok)
[Vojvodina, Serbia, date unknown]

Lateral view of a Eurasian Jay (photo courtesy of D. Wilczynska)
[Ostrow Mazowiecka, Masovia, Poland, January 2017]

Lateral view of a Eurasian Jay (photo courtesy of G. Pinelas)
[Reboleira, Lisbon, Portugal, January 2019]

Lateral view of a Eurasian Jay (photo courtesy of D. Wilczynska)
[Ostrow Mazowiecka, Masovia, Poland, January 2017]

Lateral view of a Eurasian Jay (photo courtesy of D. Wilczynska)
[Ostrow Mazowiecka, Masovia, Poland, November 2015]

Lateral view of a Eurasian Jay (photo courtesy of G. Pinelas)
[Reboleira, Lisbon, Portugal, January 2019]

Near-dorsal view of a Eurasian Jay (photo courtesy of D. Wilczynska)
[Ostrow Mazowiecka, Masovia, Poland, November 2015]

Dorsal view of a Eurasian Jay looking sideways (photo courtesy of M. Thomas)
[Eltville, Hessen, Germany, January 2019]

Dorsal view of a Eurasian Jay (photo courtesy of H. Dahlem-Senger)
[Eltville, Hessen, Germany, February 2023]

Lateral view of a Eurasian Jay in flight, wings folded (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Raia river, Mora, Evora, Portugal, October 2022]

Dorsal view of a Eurasian Jay in flight, wings folded (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Mora, Evora, Portugal, September 2019]

Behaviour

Social behaviour: Territorial

Mobility: Sedentary

Elementary unit: Solitary

While Eurasian Jays are mostly sedentary, in the northern parts of their range they may move south- to south-westward in some autumns to overwinter.

Food, Diet

Lateral view of a Eurasian Jay with its meal, an acorn (photo courtesy ofJ. Pires )
[Acude do Gameiro, Mora, Evora, Portugal, November 2022]

Lateral view of a Eurasian Jay in flight, with its acorn (photo courtesy ofJ. Pires )
[Vojvodina, Serbia, date unknown]

Near-lateral view of a Eurasian Jay taking fat from a bird feeder (photo courtesy of M. Thomas)
[Eltville, Hessen, Germany, January 2019]

Call(s)/Song

For this species we have recorded the following call(s)/song. The interpretation of their meaning is our own; comments and suggestions for improvement are welcome.

eurjay_dw_20160907_2.m4a	glandarius (Poland)	Contact calls?	© DW
eurjay_jp_20220129.m4a	glandarius (Portugal)	Territorial calls?	© JP
eurjay_dw_20160907_1.m4a	glandarius (Poland)	Alarm calls (human)	© DW
eurjay_jp_20251126.m4a	glandarius (Portugal)	Alarm calls?	© JP

More Eurasian Jay sound recordings are available at xeno-canto.org .

These pages are largely based on our own observations and those of our contributors. The structure of these bird pages is explained HERE. For more salient facts on any bird species please refer to a field guide.

Would you like to contribute photos or sound recordings to this site? If interested, please CLICK HERE. Credits to contributors are given HERE.