Clark's Nutcracker

Nucifraga columbianaOrder: PASSERIFORMES Family: Crows and Jays (Corvidae)

Codes: Common Name: CLNU Scientific Name: NUCCOL ITIS Taxonomic No.: 179750

Breeding Location:

Forests, coniferous, Mountains

Breeding Type:

Monogamous, Colonial

Breeding Population:

Egg Color:

Green or olive with brown, olive or gray marks

Number of Eggs:

2 - 6

Incubation Days:

16 - 18

Egg Incubator:

Both sexes

Nest Material:

Small sticks and pieces of bark., Lined with pine needles, leaves, and grass.

Migration:

Nonmigratory

General

Clark's Nutcracker: Medium-sized, noisy and inquisitive jay with pale gray head and body. Bill is long and stout. Wings are black with white patches and tail is black with white edges. Sexes are similar.

Range and Habitat

Clark's Nutcracker: Resident in southern British Columbia and Alberta south California and Colorado; prefers stands of junipers and ponderosa pines on high mountain ranges near the tree line.

Breeding and Nesting

Clark's Nutcracker: Two to six pale green or olive eggs, marked with brown, olive or gray, are laid in a deep bowl nest made of sticks built in a conifer. Nest is well insulated, with outer part built from rotten wood pulp and inner bowl lined with finer material. Incubation ranges from 16 to 18 days and is carried out by both parents.

Foraging and Feeding

Clark's Nutcracker: Feeds mostly on conifer seeds; also take flying insects, ants, small vertebrates, bird eggs and nestlings, and occasionally carrion. Uses its sturdy, pointed bill to pry seeds out of green cones, or to hammer and crush seeds out of shells.

Readily Eats

Cracked Corn, Suet, Sunflower Seed

Vocalization

Clark's Nutcracker: Emits a very nasal, rasping, and dragged-out "caw" or "kra-a-a."

Similar Species

Clark's Nutcracker: Gray Jay is slimmer, lacks white on wings, and has gray tail.

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Bird Call Credits: The Macaulay Library of Natural Sounds at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Martyn Stewart, http://www.naturesound.org, Redmond, Washington USA. The reuse or copying of bird calls in this database is strictly forbidden.

Clark's Nutcracker

Clark's Nutcracker: Medium, noisy and inquisitive jay with pale gray head and body. Black bill is long and stout. Wings are black with white patches and tail is black with white edges. Feeds on nuts, insects, eggs and young of other birds, lizards, carrion and small mammals. Steady deep wing beats.

● Song: "caw", "kra-a-a"

● Foraging & Feeding: Clark's Nutcracker: Feeds mostly on conifer seeds; also take flying insects, ants, small vertebrates, bird eggs and nestlings, and occasionally carrion. Uses its sturdy, pointed bill to pry seeds out of green cones, or to hammer and crush seeds out of shells.

● Breeding & nesting: Clark's Nutcracker: Two to six pale green or olive eggs, marked with brown, olive or gray, are laid in a deep bowl nest made of sticks built in a conifer. Nest is well insulated, with outer part built from rotten wood pulp and inner bowl lined with finer material. Incubation ranges from 16 to 18 days and is carried out by both parents.

● Similar species: Clark's Nutcracker: Gray Jay is slimmer, lacks white on wings, and has gray tail.

Flight Pattern

Slow steady deep delierate wing beats., Crowlike flight.

● Range & Habitat: Clark's Nutcracker: Resident in southern British Columbia and Alberta south California and Colorado; prefers stands of junipers and ponderosa pines on high mountain ranges near the tree line.

^BreedingMonogamous, Colonial

^Population

^MigrationNonmigratory

^Weight5 Ounces

4 and 6 letter alpha codes

The four letter common name alpha code is is derived from the first two letters of the common first name and the first two letters of common last name. The six letter species name alpha code is derived from the first three letters of the scientific name (genus) and the first three letters of the scientific name (species). See (1) below for the rules used to create the codes..

Four-letter (for English common names) and six-letter (for scientific names) species alpha codes were developed by Pyle and DeSante (2003, North American Bird-Bander 28:64-79) to reflect A.O.U. taxonomy and nomenclature (A.O.U. 1998) as modified by Supplements 42 (Auk 117:847-858, 2000) and 43 (Auk 119:897-906, 2002). The list has been updated by Pyle and DeSante to reflect changes reported by the A.O.U from 2003 through 2006.

Field Guide to Birds of North America