White-throated Magpie-Jay, Calocitta formosa

White-throated Magpie-Jay, Calocitta formosa formosa. Photographs taken in the greater Zihuatanejo area, Guerrero, March 2019. Photographs courtesy of Ron Woheau, Zihuatanejo.

White-throated Magpie-Jay, Calocitta formosa formosa. Birds photographed in Parque National Huatulco, Huatulco, Oaxaca, March 2021. Photographs and identification courtesy of Marina Sutormina, Stockholm, Sweden.

The White-throated Magpie-Jay, Calocitta formosa formosa, is a one of three subspecies of White-throated Magpie-Jay, with all three being found in Mexico. They are member of the Corvidae Family of Crows, Jays and Magpies, which has one hundred twenty-eight members placed in twenty-three genera, and of the two global species of the Calocitta Genus. In Mexico they are known as urraca hermosa cariblanca.

The White-throated Magpie-Jay are large in stature. The sexes have similar plumages that are overall blue, black and white. They have a slightly recurved erectile forecrown crest of long black feathers with whitish or bluish margins and some dark feathers around the eye and a blue-black malar stripe. Their crown and nape are black, or black with some feathers barred white and blue, or black just behind crest and sky-blue, and the side of the head, neck and throat, and breast are white. Their underparts are sky blue, and the tail has two bright blue central feathers on the basal half and white elsewhere. Their bill is black, their iris is dark brown and their legs are black. They are long tailed. The females are similar to the males but have shorter tails and have more extensive black on the ear coverts, a narrow breast band and duller upperparts.

The White-throated Magpie Jay is found in the lowlands and foothills in semi-humid woodlands, thorn-forests, deciduous forest and gallery forests and open bushy country at elevations below1,250 m (4,100 feet). They are nonmigratory. They consume large invertebrates, small lizards, frogs, eggs and nestlings of small birds and seasonal berries, fruits, grains, and nectar. They breed in coops with both sexes building large bulky nests with the female offspring staying in the group and help their parents raise future broods, while male offspring disperse. The groups generally consist of a dominant female, her lone social mate, and a number of retained female offspring who feed the dominant female, nestlings, and fledglings. They are known for their wide array of vocal calls.

The White-throated Magpie-Jay is similar to the Black-throated Magpie Jay, Calocitta colliei (all black head). They are known to hybridize with the Black-throated Jay.

In Mexico the White-throated Magpie-Jay is found in the coastal regions within the Pacific Slope of Jalisco, Colima, Michoacán, Guerrero, Oaxaca and Chiapas.

From a conservation perspective the White-throated Magpie-Jay is currently considered to be of Least Concern with stable, widely distributed populations.