Gray Jay Named National Bird of Canada

Birdorable Gray Jay in Canada

Last year, in a public poll conducted by the Royal Canadian Geographical Society, Canadian citizens voted for an unofficial national bird to represent their country. The finalists were: the Canada Goose, long associated with the national identiy; the Common Loon, a bird featured on Canadian currency; the Black-capped Chickadee; the Snowy Owl; and the Gray Jay. The Common Loon won the popular vote, but the Gray Jay was selected by Canadian Geographic to be Canada's new national bird.

Some of the birds on the list were already recognized as official provincial birds in Canada: the Black-capped Chickadee of New Brunswick; the Common Loon of Ontario; and the Snowy Owl of Quebec.

Gray Jays are found in all of Canada's provinces and remain on location year-round. These plucky little gregarious birds are known for their intelligence. Other jays officially representing Canada are the official provicial birds of Yukon (Common Raven), Prince Edward Island (Blue Jay) and British Columbia (Steller's Jay).

Officially, Canada has two animal national symbols that are recognized by the federal government: the beaver and the Canadian Horse share the title of National Animal of Canada. It is unclear if the government will recognize the Gray Jay, or any other species, as the National Bird of Canada.

Cute Gray Jay Gifts

Comments

Louise Warner on February 6, 2017 at 5:57 PM wrote:
i live in canada.
Spurwing Plover on May 21, 2022 at 10:31 PM wrote:
Also called Camp Robbers and Whskiejacks Lumberjacks bleieved they were the souls of Deacsed Lumberjacks

Leave a comment

Comments with links or HTML will be deleted. Your comment will be published pending approval.
Your email address will not be published

T-Shirt Tuesday: Birds of Costa Rica

This fun Costa Rica design, featuring some of the country's most beautiful birds, is shown here on a comfortable classic baseball jersey for women, made from 100% super-soft ring-spun cotton by Bella. The design is also available...

Martha Week: Passenger Pigeon Books

Monday, September 1st will mark the 100 year anniversary of the death of Martha, the last of her species, the Passenger Pigeon. With her death our planet lost another species forever to extinction. This week we'd like to share some of the commemorative events and educational opportunities...

T-Shirt Tuesday: Loggerhead Kingbird Baby Bodysuit

This week's featured t-shirt is a brand-new baby product that was recently added to our store: this adorable Baby Football Bodysuit featuring our Birdorable Loggerhead Kingbird. This beautiful bird can be found on the Caribbean islands, including the Bahamas, Cayman Islands, Cuba and Puerto Rico, and...

Cockatoos anticipate tasty prize, use self-control

In a recent research study, it was discovered that cockatoos would exhibit self-control in order to receive a prized nut. Self-control was previously thought to be exclusively practiced by animals with larger brains. Researchers...