Black-collared Jay Cyanolyca armillata Scientific name definitions

The Black-collared Jay is a beautiful, montane corvid of northwestern South America. It is among the most enigmatic and poorly known of the montane jays, inhabiting humid forests and edges between 1800 and 3000 meters. It can be easily overlooked, and is, in some regions, inexplicably absent from seemingly suitable habitat. It is found in the Andes from western Venezuela to northern Ecuador, where it is most common in Venezuela and northern Colombia. It is dark blue overall with a paler blue crown and nape with a prominent black face mask connecting to a thin black breast band. In the southern part of its range, it is sympatric with the similar Turquoise Jay (Cyanolyca turcosa), but that species is greener overall with a shorter tail. Much remains to be learned about the Black-collared Jay; its breeding biology, diet, and habitat requirements are essentially unknown.