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Steller's Jay

Steller's Jay line art illustration (click image to enlarge)

Steller's Jay full color illustration (click image to enlarge)

Artist's notes:

The Steller's Jay was completed on 8.26.2011. Slowly I am working my way through the birds of the Western US. Steller's Jay's are wonderful birds, and from what I can tell pretty intelligent. I have watched them patiently (sometimes not so patiently!) wait for people to clear a campsite so they can forage for food. They coloration of the birds is very dramatic, going from black and gray to a lovely shade of deep blue to light blue and even patches of white. It was a very nice subject to illustration. The drawing is based on a photo by David Cree.

Information about the Steller's Jay:

The Steller's Jay - sometimes called the Mountain Jay, Pine Jay or Long-Crested Jay - is a member of the family Corvidae. They are closely related to Blue Jays, and occasionally will breed with them to produce a hybrid species. They are native to the Western United States, living in the coniferous and mixed woodlands as well as rocky mountainous areas with tall trees such as pines, often on the edges of populated areas, which they exploit for food. These birds are omnivorous, feeding on nuts, seeds, fruit, eggs of other birds, small invertebrates, lizards, mice and other small mammals. The bird gets its name from the German naturalist Georg Wilhelm Steller, who was the first to record them in 1741.