A smart, crestless blue jay of Texas Hill Country cedar brakes and oak woods, recognized by its dull blue upperparts, grey back, and rasping raspy calls.
Field Identification: Dull blue head, wings, and tail; soft grey back; white throat with dark streaking; and no head crest.
Texas & Hill Country Notes: Woodhouse's Scrub-Jays are vital oak forest engineers; a single jay can cache over 5,000 live oak acorns in the ground each autumn. Unlike eastern Blue Jays, Scrub-Jays lack a head crest and have a more slender bill adapted for prying open Ashe juniper bark.
