if you saw a flash of blue, that was me leaving.
Jay says
Bird 23 of 30 · video, 37:51
Jay
Garrulus glandarius
An exotic-looking, shy woodland crow: pinkish-brown with blue-barred wings, and an acorn-burying habit.
- Large, 166.8 g
- Stays all year
- High in a tree
- In a tree
- On a feeder or bird table
About the jay
Marks and dots
Tap a numbered dot, or a name in the list.
Pinkish-brown plumage, the same in male and female.
Luminous blue, barred wings: the flash of blue you see when it leaves.
From egg to adult
-
Egg
Eggs4–5 eggs≠BTOthe video says 5–6 eggs
Hatch after18 days BTO
-
Chick in the nest
In the nest forabout 21 days video, BTO agrees
-
Young bird
The young fly after about three weeks.
Adult
Pinkish-brown; blue, barred wings
Broods a year1 brood video, BTO agrees
BTO averages: 18 days incubating the eggs, then 22 days in the nest. Averages across nest records, so the figures above can differ a little.
At the table
- acorns, buried for winter
- insects
Jays are effective nest predators in spring and summer, taking eggs and nestlings, but the mainstay of the diet is acorns and insects.
This page mentions bird tables. Since April 2026 the RSPB and the BTO advise against them, and say to feed seeds and peanuts only from November to April. What changed, and why.
Through the year
Jay: around Jan to Dec; first eggs laid 1 Mar to 30 Apr, average 31 Mar (BTO); first chicks leave the nest 8 Apr to 9 Jun (worked out from BTO).
What to know about the jay
Eight short notes in our own words. Each chip says what the note stands on, and links to its row in the table below.
What to look for
Males and females are very similar: pinkish-brown plumage and luminous blue, barred wings. A flash of blue through garden trees, or on a woodland walk, often means a jay is leaving.
Song and call
The video does not describe the voice. BTO says the raspy call is often the best sign that a jay is about.
Nest
Nests are usually high up in a tree fork or in creepers such as honeysuckle. The eggs look like a blackbird's.
Feeding
Jays are effective nest predators in spring and summer, taking eggs and nestlings, but the mainstay of the diet is acorns and insects.
Staying or leaving
A jay rarely flies far from its territory, but if the acorn crop fails it has been known to make long journeys to find acorns to bury for the winter. BTO says its range is spreading to the north and west.
In the garden
Still a rare treat for a garden watcher, but an increasingly frequent visitor to bird tables. Very shy and wary: the slightest noise or movement and it is gone.
Sources and checks
Where every fact about the jay came from
18 claims about the jay: 3 checked, 9 from the video only,1 differ, 5 from a source only. How the grades work
| Claim, in our words | Video time | Grade | What the source says |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jays have pinky-brown plumage and luminescent blue barred wings. | 38:17 | checked | BTO, read 2026-10-05BTO describes pinkish plumage and striking blue and black barring on the wing. |
| A flash of blue through garden trees or on a woodland walk can often indicate a departing jay. | 38:22 | video only | |
| Male and female jays are very similar. | 38:17 | video only | |
| BTO says the jay's raspy call can be the best indicator of its presence. | source only | source only | BTO, read 2026-10-05BTO's introduction to the species. |
| The exotic-looking jay is still a rare treat for the garden watcher, but is now an increasingly frequent visitor to garden bird tables. | 37:51 | video only | |
| It is a very shy, secretive and wary species: the slightest noise or movement sends it flying. | 38:07 | video only | |
| The jay is an effective nest predator, taking eggs and nestlings during spring and summer. | 38:33 | video only | |
| The mainstay of the diet is acorns and insects. | 38:40 | video only | The video's automatic captions list a third item that could not be made out, so it is left out. |
| The jay rarely flies far from its territory, but if acorn crops fail it has been known to go on long journeys to find acorns to bury for the winter. | 38:44 | video only | |
| BTO says the jay's range is expanding to the north and west, particularly in Scotland and Ireland. | source only | source only | BTO, read 2026-10-05BTO's introduction to the species. |
| Nests are usually placed high up in a tree fork or in creepers such as honeysuckle. | 38:55 | video only | |
| The eggs resemble those of a blackbird. | 39:01 | video only | |
| A brood of five to six.video: 5–6 eggs | 39:03 | ≠differs | BTO, read 2026-10-05: 4–5 eggs (BTO typical)outside BTO's typical range of 4–5, though inside the 2–7 BTO has observed |
| One brood is raised each year.video: 1 brood | 39:03 | checked | BTO, read 2026-10-05: 1 brood (BTO typical)inside BTO's typical range of 1 |
| The young fly after about three weeks.video: about 21 days | 39:05 | checked | BTO, read 2026-10-05: 20–22.5 days (BTO typical)inside BTO's typical range of 20–22.5 |
| Adult weight, from ringing records: 166.8 g, adult average. | source only | source only | BTO, read 2026-10-05: 166.8 g, adult average |
| Timing of the first clutch: first eggs laid around 31 Mar (1 Mar-30 Apr). | source only | source only | BTO, read 2026-10-05: first eggs laid around 31 Mar (1 Mar-30 Apr) |
| Incubation takes 18 days (BTO typical). | source only | source only | BTO, read 2026-10-05: 18 days (BTO typical) |
Written in our own words after “British Birds in your Garden” by The Great British Channel, where the jay starts at 37:51.Numbers are checked against the BTO's page for the jay, read on 5 October 2026. We are not connected to the channel or to the BTO.
More birbs: 30 so far, and more to come
The coins down the right of the screen are all 30. Tap one to go to that bird.