AUSTIN (KXAN) — A new bird, discovered just outside of San Antonio, is taking the birding world by storm. Part Blue Jay, part Green Jay: the “Grue Jay”.
“We feel that it really is kind of a unique event, a bellwether, if you will, that environments are changing very rapidly,” said Professor Timothy Keitt, with the Department of Integrative Biology at The University of Texas in Austin and one author on a new paper about the “Grue Jay.”
Keitt studies the Green Jay, which has moved further north as a result of a changing climate. “One of the things that we were wondering is, when they encounter Blue Jays, would that stop this expansion? That they would be antagonistic to each other.”
In 2023, we got an answer. A homeowner in the suburbs of San Antonio reported a mysterious bird. Brian Stokes, a Ph.D. candidate at UT Austin and the lead author of the paper, drove out and captured photos of the bird.
“We have only seen one bird right now. It is considered anomalous,” Stokes said.
What makes the “Grue Jay” special? He is a slightly paler blue than its Blue Jay dad, but has the same face mask as its Green Jay mom. Genetic testing revealed its parents.
“It might not be super noticeable to your average backyard birder,” Stokes said.
These birds don’t typically mate. “It’s two birds that are in a different genus, so evolutionarily, they’re quite distant. It’s about 7.5 million years or so since they last shared a common ancestor,” Stokes said.
Blue Jays, found across Central Texas, and Green Jays are both social birds within their species. “It’s not unusual to have hybrids in birds, but these are intelligent, social animals that live in family groups,” Keitt said.
Keitt said that as the Green Jays have expanded further north, their territory has mixed with the Blue Jays. However, there still aren’t a ton of these species on the fringes of the territory.
“This was a result of that there were very few Blue Jays around and very few Green Jays in the same place,” Keitt said.
Stokes said this is not a new species. That doesn’t mean more couldn’t pop up.
The “Grue Jay” originally spotted in 2023 was seen again this summer. While he did hang out with Blue Jays, there is no telling if they would mate with the new bird.
“There might be some interest on its side. But you know, this could be your proverbial Ugly Duckling, where the bird isn’t the most attractive (to them),” Stokes said.
Keitt asks that if you spot the birds or other Jays to send photos and recordings to their team. You can reach him at tkeitt@utexas.edu.
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