These large spectacular Middle American corvids are famous for their complex social structure. They have helpers at the nest consisting of females from prior generations. These young females mate with floater males and deposit their eggs into the nest of the dominate female, an example of intraspecific brood parasitism. A study by Berg (2005) found that 22% of eggs tested were not those of the primary female.
Three races are recognized. This is the small, pale C. f. pompata which lacks a black eye-patch. It ranges from SE Mexico to Costa Rica where it has recently been expanding its range. This species is sometimes lumped with the Black-throated Magpie-Jay of Mexico with which it sometimes hybridizes. Some authorities (HBW, HM4) include both in the genus Cyanocorax in which case the full scientific name becomes C. formosus pompatus for gender agreement. Canon PowerShot SX50 HS
References:
Berg EC, 2005. Parentage and reproductive success in the white-throated magpie-jay, Calocitta formosa, a cooperative breeder with female helpers. Animal Behaviour 70:375-385.
dos Anjos, L. (2018). White-throated Magpie-jay (Cyanocorax formosus). In: del Hoyo, J., Elliott, A., Sargatal, J., Christie, D.A. & de Juana, E. (eds.). Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona. (retrieved from https://www.hbw.com/node/60725 on 7 January 2018).
Madge, S. & Burn, H. (1994) Crows and Jays: A Guide to the Crows, Jays and Magpies of the World. Houghton Mifflin, Boston.
White-throated Magpie-Jay (Calocitta formosa), In Neotropical Birds Online (T. S. Schulenberg, editor). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, New York, USA. retrieved from Neotropical Birds Online: https://neotropical.birds.cornell.edu/Species-Account/nb/species/wtmjay1