Jay

The jay is one of the most colourful members of the crow-family (Corvidae).
Besides their colour their habits and intelligence are very crow-like. Linnaeus already knew that and that’s why he called the jay Corvus glandarius (Corvus is Latin for raven). The Latin word glandarius (from glandis = acorn) refers to the acorn eating and acorn collecting and hiding habits of the jay. Especially this hiding habit shows the jay’s intelligence.
Later, the genus name Corvus was changed in Garrulus to distinguish the jay from the all-black ‘true crows’ of the genus Corvus. Its name garrulus is based on its sound and means babbling or chattering. But the jay is still a member of the resourceful crow-family and therefore a very adaptable and successful species.