Eurasian Jay - Taxonomy

Taxonomy

The Eurasian Jay was one of the many species originally described by Linnaeus in his 18th century work Systema Naturae. He recognised its affinity with other corvids, naming it Corvus glandarius.

Eight racial groups (33 subspecies in total) are recognised by Madge & Burn (1994):

• the nominate group (nine European races), with a streaked crown.
• the cervicalis group (three races in North Africa), with a rufous nape, grey mantle, very pale head sides, and a streaked or black crown.
• the atricapillus group (four races in Middle East, Crimea & Turkey), with a uniform mantle & nape, black crown and very pale face.
• the race hyrcanus (Caspian Hyrcanian mixed forests of Iran), small with black forecrown and broadly-streaked hindcrown.
• the brandtii group (four races in Siberia and northern Japan), with a streaked crown, reddish head, dark iris and grey mantle.
• the leucotis group (two races in south-east Asia), with no white in the wing, a white forecrown, black hindcrown and much white on the sides of the head.
• the bispecularis group (six races in the Himalayan region), with an unstreaked rufous crown, and no white wing-patch.
• the japonicus group (four races in the southern Japanese islands), with a large white wing-patch, blackish face and scaled crown.