Aphelocoma

The passerine birds of the genus Aphelocoma include the scrub jays and relatives. They are New World jays found in Mexico, western Central America and the western United States, with an outlying population in Florida. This genus belongs to the group of New World (or "blue") jays–possibly a distinct subfamily–which is not closely related to other jays, magpies or treepies. They live in open pine-oak forests, chaparral, and mixed evergreen forests.

Systematics

Six species of Aphelocoma are generally recognized currently, since two taxa formerly treated as races of A. coerulescens were recently split off as separate species (A. californica and A. insularis); the 3 now separate species differ in color and bill size. They are believed to have evolved in the Pleistocene, and the Floridan species is known to have been recognizably distinct and present in its current range for at least 2 million years. Indeed, the inland and coastal populations of A. californica seem to constitute 2 distinct species too, as might different populations of the Mexican jay.