Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata)

Birds of North Carolina: their Distribution and Abundance  – Blue Jay (Carolina Bird Club)
The Blue Jay is one of our best known birds, breeding across the eastern half of the country, and in all 100 counties of North Carolina.

birdsounds.net – Blue Jay
Hear the Blue Jay’s call, song and alarm call.

Audubon Guide to North American Birds – Blue Jay
One of the loudest and most colorful birds of eastern back yards and woodlands, the Blue Jay is unmistakable. Besides their raucous jay! jay! calls, Blue Jays make a variety of musical sounds, and they can do a remarkable imitation of the scream of a Red-shouldered Hawk.

All About Birds: Blue Jay (Cornell Lab of Ornithology)
This common, large songbird is familiar to many people, with its perky crest; blue, white, and black plumage; and noisy calls. Blue Jays are known for their intelligence and complex social systems with tight family bonds. Their fondness for acorns is credited with helping spread oak trees after the last glacial period.

How to Distinguish a Female Blue Jay Bird from a Male (Science Trends)
Blue Jays are beautiful birds that inhabit the eastern and central parts of the United States, known for their bright blue feathers and the crest on their heads. Yet as striking as blue jays are, it’s difficult to tell female blue jays apart from male blue jays. How can you discern the difference between the two sexes of blue jays?

Blue Jay (Bird Watcher’s Digest)
Blue jays are common in wooded habitats, especially those with oaks. Indeed the blue jay has a special relationship with oaks, burying as many as five thousand acorns in fall caches for future consumption. Many of these acorns are never retrieved, so jays are credited with helping with forest generation.