Species Profile: Florida Scrub Jay (Aphelocoma coerulescens) on Military Installations in the Southeastern United States.

The Florida scrub jay Aphelocoma coerulescens is a nonmigratory, highly social bird endemic to Florida. The species is both Federally and State listed as threatened. The historical range extended from northern Florida to the southern tip of the State, but the species is currently restricted to scattered, small, and often isolated patches of scrub habitat almost exclusively in peninsular Florida. Optimal habitat for the Florida scrub jay consists of open, low-growing scrub communities having shrubs and sparsely vegetated sandy areas. It is most abundant in oak-dominated scrub communities but also uses coastal scrub and some communities with a pine component. The Florida scrub jay has been documented on five military installations in Florida. This report is one of a series of Species Profiles being developed for threatened, endangered, and sensitive species inhabiting southeastern United States plant communities. The work is being conducted as part of the Department of Defense DoD Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program SERDP. The report is designed to supplement information provided in plant community management reports for major United States plant communities found on military installations. Information provided on the Florida scrub jay includes status, life history and ecology, habitat requirements, impacts and causes of decline, habitat assessment techniques, inventory and monitoring, and management and protection.