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Seeing Bushy-crested Jay in Guatemala
with CAYAYA BIRDING

adult Bushy-crested Jay in Guatemala
Adult Bushy-crested Jay Cyanocorax melanocyaneus in the highlands of Guatemala.

Bushy-crested Jay Cyanocorax melanocyaneus, formerly also called Hartlaub's Jay, is endemic to the highlands of northern Central America including Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, and western Nicaragua. In Guatemala it is common above 800 m in pine-oak forest, along cloud forest egde, and in plantations with shade trees. Occasionally and locally it also occurs at lower altitudes (Eisermann & Avendaño 2018).

Bushy-crested Jay with raised crest
Adult Bushy-crested Jay Cyanocorax melanocyaneus with raised crest, seen in the Guatemalan highlands.

Bushy-crested Jays are social. They breed cooperatively and roam in small flocks through the habitat. Ocassionally they can be seen together with other jays such as Steller's Jay (Cyanocitta stelleri) or Black-throated Jay (Cyanolyca pumilo).

habitat of Bushy-crested Jay
Semideciduous pine-oak forest in the highlands of Guatemala, habitat of Bushy-crested Jay Cyanocorax melanocyaneus.

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Photographs of Bushy-crested Jays seen during CAYAYA BIRDING tours in Guatemala

Bushy-crested Jay adults wth juvenile juvenile Bushy-crested Jay Bushy-crested Jays with raised crest curious Bushy-crested Jay Bushy-crested Jay with slightly raised crest immature Bushy-crested Jay adult Bushy-crested Jay juvenile Bushy-crested Jay in Guatemala fledgling of Bushy-crested Jay adult Bushy-crested Jay adult Bushy-crested Jay Slightly perplexed-looking Bushy-crested Jay

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Dorsal view at adult Bushy-crested Jay
Bushy-crested Jay (Cyanocorax melanocyaneus) in the highlands of Guatemala.

Contributions by Knut Eisermann and Claudia Avendaño of CAYAYA BIRDING to the knowledge about Bushy-crested Jay

  • Eisermann, K. & C. Avendaño (2018) An update on the inventory, distribution and residency status of bird species in Guatemala. Bulletin British Ornithologists' Club 138: 148-229.
  • Eisermann, K., C. Avendaño & P. Tanimoto (2013). Birds of the Cerro El Amay Important Bird Area, Quiché, Guatemala. Cotinga 35: 81-93.
  • Eisermann, K. & C. Avendaño (2009) Guatemala. Pp. 235-242 In: C. Devenish, D. F. Diaz Fernández, R. P. Clay, I. Davidson & I. Y. Zabala (eds.) Important Bird Areas Americas, priority sites for biodiversity conservation. BirdLife Conservation Series 16. Birdlife International, Quito, Ecuador.
  • Eisermann, K. & C. Avendaño (2009) Conservation priority-setting in Guatemala through the identification of Important Bird Areas. Proceedings of the Fourth International Partners in Flight Conference, Tundra to Tropics: 315-327.
  • Eisermann, K. & C. Avendaño (2007) Lista comentada de las aves de Guatemala - Annotated checklist of the birds of Guatemala. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona, Spain.
  • Eisermann, K. & C. Avendaño (2006) Diversidad de aves en Guatemala, con una lista bibliográfica. Pp. 525-623 In: E. Cano (ed.) Biodiversidad de Guatemala, Vol. 1. Universidad del Valle de Guatemala, Guatemala.
  • Eisermann, K. & U. Schulz (2005) Birds of a high-altitude cloud forest in Alta Verapaz, Guatemala. Revista de Biología Tropical 53: 577-594.
  • More about our bird research in Guatemala.
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