Purplish Jay

The purplish jay is 37 to 40 cm (15 to 16 in) long and weighs about 185 to 220 g (6.5 to 7.8 oz). The sexes have the same plumage and both have a tuft of feathers at the base of the bill. Adults have a sooty black forecrown, sides of the head, throat, and upper breast. Their crown is purplish brown that becomes more purple on the nape. The rest of their body is bluish purple with a brownish wash, with the brightest shade on the remiges and uppertail coverts. Their rectrices are a dark violet-blue. As the body feathers wear they become browner and contrast more with the tail than when fresh. The species has a dark brown iris, a black bill, and black legs and feet.

The purplish jay is found in southeastern Peru's Amazonas Department in the basin of the Madre de Dios River. Its range continues east across northern and eastern Bolivia into southern Brazil. From there it extends south through Paraguay into northern Argentina's Formosa, Chaco, Corrientes, and Misiones provinces. In Brazil its range's edge follows a rough line from southern Rondônia east across southern Mato Grosso and south across most of Mato Grosso do Sul. The species has also occurred as a vagrant in Uruguay. The purplish jay inhabits a variety of landscapes including deciduous forest and woodlands, gallery forest, scrublands, and human-managed groves. In elevation it reaches 1,000 m (3,300 ft) in both Brazil and Peru.

The purplish jay feeds mostly on invertebrates and fruit but has been observed feeding on carrion. When eating fruit it discards the seeds, which germinate at a higher rate than those of intact fruits and those swallowed and passed by other feeders. It typically forages in family groups. It has been observed acting as a cleaner on a large mammal.