Blue Jay Landing With Wings Fanned Wide

A blue jay drops toward a bare branch with both wings spread and its tail opened into a fan. The feathers are a soft slate blue-gray, crossed with dark bars, and the tips of the tail and wing feathers are edged in clean white. The pale underside and the dark necklace around the throat stand out against the wings. Its feet are stretched forward, ready to grip. Behind it, a muted green field and a dim band of leafless trees blur into an overcast autumn backdrop. The light is even and cool, so the picture feels calm even though the bird is mid-motion.

The blue jay (Cyanocitta cristata) lives across eastern and central North America. It is a member of the crow family and is known for intelligence, loud calls and a habit of caching acorns and seeds. Many northern birds move south in autumn, though plenty stay through the winter. This one was observed in Kings County, New Brunswick, Canada. The wide landscape frame and the open space on the left and right suit desktop monitors and ultrawide screens, where the outstretched wings have room to breathe.