China (mainland), Finland (B) (NB), Kazakhstan (B), Mongolia, Norway (B), Russia (Asian) (B), Russia (Central Asian) (B) (NB), Russia (European) (B) (NB), Sweden (B) (NB).
Vagrant to Belarus, Estonia, Latvia, Poland, Slovakia (Slovak Republic), Ukraine.
Population
Estimated population is 2,000,000 - 10,000,000 (2010).
Siberian Jay (Perisoreus infaustus) [XC142214]
by Terje Kolaas from Inari, Pohjois-Lappi, Lapland, Finland (call)
Siberian Jay (Perisoreus infaustus) [XC148805]
by Ulf Elman from Ongudaysky District, Altay, Russian Federation (call)
Subspecies
Recent DNA-sequencing indicates that this genus and Cyanopica form unique clades, separate from other corvids; significance of this requires further research, but it may suggest that Perisoreus is not very closely related to Garrulus. Probably forms a superspecies with Sichuan Jay (Perisoreus internigrans) and Grey Jay (Perisoreus canadensis). Geographical variation complex, with clines in colour tones, greyest in central Siberia and becoming more rufous towards western and again towards east, but tones and extent of rufous in wing vary also from south to north. Further, clinal intergradation has created much taxonomic confusion in terms of number of subspecies that should be recognized, various reviews allowing as many as seventeen and as few as four. Conservative assessment suggests that manteufeli (from upper R Severnya Dvina, in north-western Russia) be included within nominate, that monjerensis (lower R Yenisei to Olenek basin, in central Siberia) is synonym of ostjakoram, that bungei (north-central Siberia between lower R Lena and lower R Kolyma) and sokolnikowi (north-eastern Siberia) be treated as synonyms of jakutensis, that rogosowi (Yenisei valley south to Sayan Mts) and suschkini (Transbaikalia, Russia) be synonymized with sibericus, that varnak (north-eastern China and middle R Amur, in south-eastern Russia) be considered synonym of tkachenkoi, and that sakhalinensis (Sakhalin) be considered synonymous with maritimus.
The following 12 subspecies are recognised:
infaustus (Linnaeus, 1758) - Norway, Sweden, Finland, Estonia and north-western Russia.
ostjakoram Sushkin and Stegmann, 1929 - Northern Russia eastern (south to 64° north) to western R Lena basin.
yakutensis Buturlin, 1916 - Central and eastern Russia (Siberia from R Yenisei east to Anadyrland).
ruthenus Buturlin, 1916 - Western Russia (from St Petersburg east to Tomsk, south of Ostjakoram).
sibericus (Boddaert, 1783) - Central Russia (central Siberia) and northern Mongolia.
tkachenkoi Sushkin and Stegmann, 1929 - Eastern part of south-central Russia (Yakutsk south to Zhigansk, on R Lena, east to middle Amur and Stanovoy Mts).
opicus Bangs, 1913 - Eastern Kazakhstan, north-western China (northern Xinjiang), south-central Russia (Tuva, western and central Altai and western Sayans).
caudatus Buturlin, 1913 - North-central Mongolia and central-southern Russia (southern Buryatia).
maritimus Buturlin, 1915 - Eastern Russia (Amurland, Ussuriland), north-eastern China (north-eastern Heilongjiang) and Sakhalin I.
rogosowi Sushkin & Stegmann, 1929 - Central Siberia to Irkutsk, middle Yenisey River and Outer Siberia.
varnak Sushkin & Stegmann, 1929 - Upper Amur River (north to Stanovoi Mountains).
sakhalinensis Buturlin, 1916 - Northern Sakhalin and Shantar islands.
BirdLife International Species Factsheet