animals, birds
Another unusual behavior observed recently of blue jays in the Northeast is the peeling and eating or storing of paint chips taken from the sides of houses. Often occurring in the winter, this activity may be a way to access the calcium contained in paint; calcium is needed in the spring to support egg laying. Providing sterilized (boiled or baked) crushed egg shell (also high in calcium) outside in a bowl has been shown to stop blue jays from chipping away at house paint.
About two weeks after hatching, curious young blue jays, like the one shown here, may start to explore around the nest for a few days before fledging. It may be as long as two months after leaving their nest before the fledglings become independent. They will follow closely and rely on their parents to learn how to find food and stay safe. Blue jay parents mate for life and produce only one clutch per year.
Blue jays, like most jays, build open cup nests made mostly of sticks and twigs, sometimes incorporating grass and mud. They build their nests in the crotch of a tree 10 to 25 feet above the ground. Blue jays may line the nest with rootlets collected from fallen trees or even freshly dug ditches and graves. The female lays two to seven eggs per clutch and incubates them for about 17 days.
Blue jays and Steller’s jays both love acorns and peanuts. They can pack several in the gular (throat) pouch, several more in the mouth and one more in the bill, carrying them off to cache in hidden nooks and crannies. A single blue jay will move and cache thousands of acorns per season; the ones never recovered have been credited with aiding the northern expansion of oaks after the last glacial period.
Western scrub-jays: Western scrub-jays can be distinguished by the deep azure head, highlighted with a bright white eyebrow, gray patches on the cheeks and back, and a white throat bordered with a blue necklace. Neither the pinyon jay nor the western scrub-jay possesses the regal crest of the blue jay and Steller’s jay.
Pinyon jays: Pinyon jays also lack the white belly and are completely blue with a little white streaking on the throat. Their scientific name, Gymnorhinus, means “naked nostrils” and refers to the lack of bristle feathers at the base of the long spiky bill. They’re one of the most social jays and often found in very large flocks. Pinyon jays are shorter than other jays.
Steller’s jays: Other (blue) jays are similar in size and coloring. Steller’s jays are the only other jay with a crest; it’s generally black with blue or white streaking on the forehead. They lack the white belly of many other jays, and the black to dark blue head and shoulders transition to an indigo body, wings and tail, giving them a beautiful ombré coloration.
like stanley and arthur.
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photographic print
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JourneyNorth, migration habits, sitings
EBird
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