Photo: Dick Dickinson/Audubon Photography Awards. Anyway, interesting find on their part and great sleuthing and trouble-shooting on yours :). And the birds were highly selective when collecting green nuts from burs in the tree canopy. Sprinklers dont only spook birds with water but they can also be loud. blue jays part 2: why are they chipping paint off my house? However, these arent the only way blue jays show off their intelligence. And a few feet away, watching from a branch as the first bird chipped paint off a column on the porch, three companions cheered her on, as if awaiting their turns at bat. Young chicks are most at risk of an attack from a Blue Jay. Tomorrow, I will go to the feed store and buy some crushed oyster shells. 26 Th5. It has been drilling holes in the wood on the side of my deck and causing a lot of damage in the 24 hours I noticed/heard this. Some individual jays migrate south one year, stay north the next winter, and then migrate south again the next year. It lives in most of the eastern and central United States; eastern populations may be migratory. Blue Jays dont peck wood naturally like woodpeckers. Margaret, Know the Facts, How to Attract Ravens: The Complete Guide, How Do Geese Decide Who Leads? I made egg salad for an event Saturday 3 DOZEN eggs and put out ALL the shells afterwardand ALL were gone that afternoon. When blue jays do hunt, they are aggressive and will raid other birds' nests, steal eggs, and kill young birds. Unlike our friend the woodchuck, woodpeckers do, in fact, live up to their name. Ive noticed that once my newly potted plants are sitting on my patio, the Blue Jays sit on the edge of the pots and gobble up the vermiculite. Their eyes are shut and don't open for the first 4 to 5 days. There is a 10% chance woodpeckers will peck at your house's vinyl siding. Our email newsletter shares the latest programs and initiatives. How to grow epiphytic Corydalis lutea 101: Plant a, Get a room. Contrary to most birds, woodpeckers have a strong neck and beak, which enable them to peck the wood continuously without harming themselves. Their fondness for acorns is credited with helping spread oak trees after the last glacial period. Younger Blue Jays are much more apt to migrate than the older ones. On a warm Fall day last year while my chickens were peacefully hanging out under their favorite lilac bush, I was startled to hear the distinct sound of a chicken in distress through my open windows. Curt Adkisson became hooked on blue jays when Carter Johnson, a plant ecologist formerly at Virginia Tech, mentioned seeing jays streaming along a woody fencerow in Wisconsin, carrying beechnuts from a patch of forest to a bog. Even if your cat never catches a Jay it is likely just having one in the area will deter a Blue Jay from hanging around too much. You might also want to check the size of the holes the bird makes and whether you had any previous infestations from wood-eating bugs, as this can be a sign that you havent fully addressed the problem. I think the main problem would arise if an egg accidentally broke in the nest box, and they discovered the tasty insides! Blue Jays are identifiable by the crest on their heads and their blue, white, and black plumage. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); I don't own chickens, but I've been under the impression (somehow) that Blue Jays are fairly aggressive to other birds. Why science has failed to recognize that the intelligence of nature and our bodies is so deeply vast that it will keep science busy, forever is itself a bit daunting. I thought birds had to find open water all winter. I sat in wait, determined to find out. When the CDs spin in the breeze and reflect light the flickering and glittering light confuses or scares birds and they avoid the area. I have to say I have come to enjoy these loudmouth, bossy birds since discovering this new aspect of them. The damage is often the worst during the spring, as. However, they can still pick up this behavior for some reasons, such as excavating the external layers of wood, chipping paint over wood for calcium, or even communicating with other birds. Lastly, you can try to use sprinklers in order to deter blue jays from your household. An Individual Behavior from a Single Blue Jay Are Blue Jays Related Woodpeckers? Thats my favorite spring and summer bird. Scattering light through modified cells on their feather barbs' surface makes their feathers appear to be blue. My hens predator call sounds like a panicked egg song, and depending on the bird it can be very high, very loud, and very shrill. This is good for grass and plant life, and it will discourage birds from venturing out into open territory where there's less protection. 17540 W. Laraway Road,Joliet, IL 60433 The male woodpecker will find the loudest thing to drum on to attract a mate. Blue Jays are omnivores. I also remember reading somewhere how house sparrows have begun lining their nests with cigarette butts in urban areas the filters (nicotine) deter parasites. Yes, small birds may scatter to the four winds when a flamboyant blue jay with its erect crest, broad wings, and fanned tail swoops in, shouting Jay! Dont nest in the corncrib, they dont do one thing but just sing their hearts out for us., Ive been there, said Curtis Adkisson, a retired Virginia Tech biology professor, when I read him this discourse from Hollywoods adaptation of Harper Lees Pulitzer Prizewinning novel. Needless to say, they lost.). document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Once a female Blue Jay chooses her mate, they are typically together for life in a monogamous relationship. Author Note: Motion-sensing sprinklers will detect the motion of the bird and spray water when it senses any movement, keeping the bird away from your wooden structures and trees. I shooed the bird away, and did a quick head count of my hens, and checked for injuries. Blue Jays will sometimes pick at dead or dying adult birds, but it is highly unlikely a Jay would make an attack attempt at a full grown chicken. Evolution in progress I call it!!! While the blue jay is a year-round resident from southern Canada to the Gulf Coast and west to the far edge of the Great Plains, some of them migrate, though their numbers vary from year to year. Blue Jays have a wide variety of vocalizations, with an immense "vocabulary." Blue Jays are also excellent mimics. And bully, thief, and murderer are among the nicer names for blue jays you might hear in boutiques that cater to backyarders, selling feeders that supposedly fend off jays and other large birds like grackles (as well as squirrels). Near shorelines they migrate in loose flocks; you can recognize them by their steady flight, rounded wings, long tail, and white underside. In fact, some of their bullying is a direct result of how well blue jays are able to get along with each other. I grew up with them in our yard, and we're just starting to get the prettier birds here in the neighbourhood. ), this is a highly evolved feature and at the same time super basic. That hadnt occurred to me. Field Fence: 8 - 12: 2. Whenever I see a Blue Jay now, I'll remember this and give them some serious side eye if they start messing with our neighborhood songbirds. Just put out 4 more half shells today and again: gone within 5 minutes. Meanwhile, back at Virginia Techs Blacksburg campus, biologist Susan Darley-Hill was monitoring blue jay acorn dispersal from a stand of 11 pin oaks surrounded by a mosaic of residential neighborhoods, vacant lots, mature woodlands, and old fields. Thirteen or fourteen, he answers. here is a video of what they have done https://www.facebook.com/frontierrots/videos/vb.1015967318/10205490968006360/?type=3&theater. How to discourage paint-chipping? Thats what the jay, above, is doing with those kernels. If you click a link on our site then make a purchase we may receive a small commission at no extra cost to you. Use scare tape. Blue Jay Tray Feeder. The dark pigment in their feathers is melanin. The Compass is full of District news andgeneral interest nature stories, whileGet Going highlights the must-do programs for the coming week. If you consider that burnished-brown acorns are a major food item for 150 species of birds and mammals and make up at least a quarter of the diets of black bears, white-tailed deer, raccoons, gray and fox squirrels, wild turkeys, and white-footed mice, to name a few, how can one begrudge jays some bird seed? That same bird pecking viciously at the windows day after day is a bit more disruptive and may even harm the bird's beak. Its either too late or maybe too early. Trees, of course, are rooted in place. I have read that it teaches them to eat their eggs. You can hang it on your home or shed, or nearby . Margaret, Additionally, some blue jays may do some peculiar behaviors that can be quite damaging, like pecking at wooden structures, houses, and windows, so why do blue jays peck wood? DEMONS! When blue jay spirit guide makes its way into your life, it means that you are intelligent, assertive, and determined. : ). National Audubon Society It went on for several days about a week ago but seems to have stopped. However, male Blue Jays are slightly larger. I put out eggshells, seed with calcium, etc. That could mean anything metal, a pole, or whatever works for the bird. FENCE TYPE: FT. APART: 1. A blue jay's wings contain tiny pockets made of air and keratin, the same protein that makes up our hair and fingernails. Very interesting findings there. Blue jay usually builds its nests on oak trees and we know that this tree is a symbol for longevity and strength. They peck to gain calcium carbonate found in exterior house paints. We learn something every day thanks to all of you. The black bridle across the face, nape, and throat varies extensively and may help Blue Jays recognize one another. Blue Jays are an incredibly interesting type of bird. The sight of a squirrel zipping up, down and all around our trees and forests is a familiar one to most people, but the zany antics of these critters can be the work of one of two species: fox squirrels or gray squirrels. So very interesting and Im glad you were able to get to the bottom of it. These calls may provide information to other jays that a hawk is around, or may be used to deceive other species into believing a hawk is present. Yet our most splendidly attired songbird is still widely loathed, even by some ardent bird lovers. the cakes, whereas in prior years they used to just visit the sunflower seed feeders. Shop Now. If your chicks are in a temporary pen to enjoy warm spring air outside of the brooder, a chicken wire top to cover the area still provides your chickens an open air area, but stops any air-bound predators swooping down and attacking your flock. Your donation will go toward enhancingthe Forest Preserve's education, conservation and recreation programs. 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