Overview

• The male bird was genetically identified as the offspring of a green jay mother and a blue jay father and the findings were published in Ecology and Evolution on September 10, 2025.
• Researchers located the unusual jay after a backyard photo surfaced on social media near San Antonio, then captured it, drew a blood sample, banded it, and released it.
• The banded bird was not seen for several years and was reported again at the same yard in June 2025.
• Scientists note the two species historically did not overlap, but green jays have moved north and blue jays west over recent decades, bringing them into contact around San Antonio.
• The team says this may be among the first observed vertebrate hybrids formed after both parent species expanded their ranges, and they point to underreported hybridization despite a 1970s captive green–blue jay specimen in Fort Worth.