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Western Scrub Jay

Western Scrub Jay line art illustration (click image to enlarge)

Western Scrub Jay full color illustration (click image to enlarge)

Artist's notes:

The Western Scrub Jay was completed on 7.31.2010. While hiking in Pinnacles National Monument, my friends and I stopped to have some snacks and water. Not long after we sat down, a friendly - and apparently hungry - Scrub Jay joined us. We gave it a few nuts, and were surprised how bold it was. It also didn't eat the food, but rather hid it to come back to later - obviously a very intelligent bird. The drawing is based on the photos I took of the encounter.

Information about the Western Scrub Jay:

The Western Scrub Jay is a species of bird native to much of western parts of North America. Its a medium-sized bird, approximately 12 inches long (27–31 cm) - including tail with a  15 inch (39 cm) wingspan. They are very bright birds and have adapted well to living in nearly every environment they encounter, from deserts, to forests to urban areas and cities. Because they are so adept at foraging, they do very well in areas with human activity and are able to make use of discarded food. They will even steal food from other birds like acorns from woodpeckers and pinecones from Clark's Nutcrackers. They will even ride the backs of livestock, picking off ticks and other parasites.