Jay
Jays are a
paraphyletic grouping of
passerine birds within the
family Corvidae. Although the term "jay"
carries no taxonomic weight, most or all of the birds referred to as jays share a few similarities; they are small to medium-sized, usually have brightly coloured feathers and short tails, and are quite noisy. These superificial characteristics set them apart from most other corvids such as
crows,
ravens,
jackdaws,
rooks and
magpies, which are mostly larger, or longer-tailed, and have darker plumage. Many so-called "jays" are genetically closer to these other corvids than other jays, however. The name 'jay' is
onomatopoeic, based on the harsh call of the species originally so named, ''
Garrulus glandarius''.
Provided by Wikipedia