Jackdaw

Description:

The Jackdaw (Coloeus monedula), sometimes known as the Eurasian Jackdaw, European Jackdaw or Western Jackdaw, is a passerine bird in the crow family. Found across Europe, western Asia and North Africa, it is mostly sedentary, although northern and eastern populations migrate south in winter. Four subspecies are recognised. It was originally described as Corvus monedula by Linnaeus, but analysis of its DNA shows it and its closest relative the Daurian Jackdaw to be early offshoots from the genus Corvus, and distinct enough to warrant reclassification in a separate genus Coloeus. Measuring 34–39 centimetres in length, the Jackdaw is a black-plumaged bird with a grey nape and distinctive white irises. It is an omnivorous and opportunistic feeder, and eats a wide variety of plant material and invertebrates, as well as food waste from urban areas. Most of the plumage is a shiny black, with a purple or blue sheen on the crown, forehead and secondaries, and a green-blue sheen on the throat, primaries, and tail. The cheeks, nape and neck are light grey to greyish-silver, and the underparts a slate-grey. The bill and legs are black.[ The iris of adults is greyish or silvery white. The iris of juvenile Jackdaws is light blue, then brownish, before whitening around a year of age. In flight, Jackdaws are separable from other corvids by their smaller size, faster and deeper wingbeats and proportionately narrower and less fingered wings. They also have a shorter, thicker neck, a much shorter bill and frequently fly in tighter flocks. The underwing is uniformly grey, unlike choughs

Habitat:

The Jackdaw has benefited from clearing of forested areas and is found in farmland and urban areas, as well as open wooded areas and coastal cliffs.

Notes:

spanish name: grajilla