A Florida Scrub Jay at Blue Spring State Park
Photo credit: M. Wanner
Scrub Jay song: Gregory Gough

The Endangered Birds of Florida

The Florida Scrub Jay
Aphelocoma coerulescens

To begin: what is a Bird?

A Bird is a warm blooded, bipedal (two legs)

vertebrate (has a backbone) with feathers,

bi lls and wings and most can fly.

It lays eggs to reproduce and many theories have

it classified as a direct descendant of Dinosaurs,

dating back to the Jurassic period.

The Ocala National Forest extends over several counties,

including Lake County, which is where we live.

Those of us who live in this paradise know that

we are very blessed to have one of the largest

known colonies of Scrub Jays in the state.

The Florida Scrub Jay is similar to a Blue Jay, but

it has no crest or black bars on its back

and no white wing markings.

A Florida Scrub Jay
Photo credit: Erika Simons

This beautiful, indigenous bird is seriously threatened

and teetering on the edge of extinction

for all of the usual reasons.

The Scrub Jay must have a Live Oak

Scrub Habitat to maintain its way of life.

The area that fits this description perfectly,

 lies within the Ancient spine of Florida,

the Lake Wales Ridge.

Guess who else wants this same land?

The Scrub Jay's loss of habitat is solely due to the developers in Florida

who believe that building more condos, houses and shopping centers

is more important than protecting our only Native Bird.

A Florida Scrub Jay
Photo credit: U.S. Gov.