You know they are present long before you ever see them. Blue Jays speak from among the trees as they watch proceedings along the boardwalk in Summerside.
They are watchful from their lofty perches and as soon as people produce birdseed or peanuts, they swoop into the area. They don’t miss anything.
We have observed several times when hawks or eagles come into the area, Blue Jays set off an alarm call that all the animals understand and for a time, everyone disappears, the chickadees, nuthatches, squirrels and chipmunks as well as the jays. The only birds which stay audible and visible are the crows and ravens.
The jays insinuate themselves into our encounters with the other birds with ease. They land on the bridge as soon as we offer raw peanuts to the chickadees. They watch closely, waiting for an opportunity to swoop in. Before long they are lined up on the railing, waiting for their chance at some food.
I placed a peanut on my open hand and stood quietly and waited.
We had never seen jays feed from someone’s hand. Within a minute,
the birds positioned themselves in the trees closer to me, watching my hand as I stood there.
It was exciting to have one land on the bridge and take the peanut.
I tried holding a raw peanut in my fingers
and sure enough, one took it from me.
When we walked away, the Blue Jays came with us, flying from tree to tree along either side of the path for several hundred meters. On our way back, when we stopped briefly on the bridge again, they appeared in the trees quickly, expecting peanuts again.
These clever birds are colourful creatures with distinctive markings. Any place they inhabit is better for it.
32 comments:
The jays and crows tickle me. They are raucous birds. Like the Tom Petty song, 'they won't back down'.
I LOVED your pictures, Marie and are amazed that they actually took food from your hand. However, I've taken a dislike to them because they are bullies when it comes to other birds. They even scared off my cardinals.
We have Steller's jays around here, similar but with a little tuft on their heads. And they are certainly cheeky birds! Never thought to try to get one to eat out of my hand, though. :-)
Hello,
What fun, I would love to hand feed the birds. The Jays have become used to getting some peanuts here every morning. They do sit in the trees and speak to me. I enjoy this post and your Blue Jay photos are awesome. Take care, enjoy your day! Wishing you a happy new week!
Lovely photos, your Jays are so much prettier than ours. Hope all is well, have a good week, Diane
These are amazing! I love Blue Jays. I've never seen so many together at one place. I can't believe they can be handfed like that, very cool!
Wonderful, wonderful birds, under-appreciated by many. Great series of pictures.
Beautiful, beautiful birds. And isn't hand feeding them an incredible (and big smile producing) privilege.
Beautiful, noisy birds!!! -smile-
You were brave to offer them, hand feeding. Since they are so rather boisterous. -smile-
I had no idea that jays would do that. When I have seen them at feeders, they hardly seem to land before they are away.
aww... beautiful birds...and they love you....
I never give foods by my hands to wild birds, they will fly away...
Have a wonderful day
Wow! Who the hell are you -- St Francis of Assisi?
A male jay visited this morning and gave me the eye through the window. Your photos are wonderful!
I so would have loved this...I suppose you will be carrying along a pocket of peanuts now. I know I would!
Wow, what a great experience to have and you got a fantastic series of photos to enjoy and remember it. Thank you for sharing these with us.
Blue jays are pretty cheeky about everything. Now they probably took the peanuts away to hide them some place. They are noisy and fun.
I love the bright and somewhat noisy Blue Jays.I do put peanuts out for them. I have never tried feeding them from my hand, but I doubt that the ones around here would do so.
What wonderful birds to be so close to. I'd love to spend some time with these characters!
Hope all is well - Stewart M - Melbourne
How wonderful Marie, especially to see so many together on the bridge. I've only seen several on my visits to PEI and find they never sit still long enough for me to photograph them.
Oh thank you for introducing to such pretty bird dear Marie :)
i absolutely LOVED them ,they sound daring and so very much friendly :)
thank you so much for amazing photos !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
they just made my day believe me :)))
more blessings to you and yours!
Oh my gosh lucky lucky you Marie, what a wonderful interaction. The blue jays are so beautiful and so many of them! Enjoyed these shots so much, merci beaucoup 💙💙💙💙💙
In my previous neighbor hood we could feed the birds and on rare occasion - a blue jay would arrive. They seemed so much larger than the typical birds that would visit my feeder. Beautiful birds.
oooooooh you know i LOVED this. i happen to love that they alert all birds and animals to imminent danger. i love their color and their markings, they are beautiful birds that get a bad rap!!
how fun that they ate from your hand, and i love the purple jacket!!!
Wonderful pictures. Not a bluejay fan after seeing them attack finches in the nest, wiping out a small flock. They're a mixed pleasure. But they are beautiful.
You're So Right, Beautiful And Distinctive Markings - Love The Grey In Their Wings As Well - Patience Is Really A Virtue
Cheers
They do have gorgeous markings! I don't know that I've ever seen a blue jay. We have Steller's jays which are colorful but quite aggressive to other birds. Bird bullies.
What a thrill to have them feed from your hand. I never expected that.
Our Jays are so noisy around here too. They chase all the smaller birds away. I love watching them though.
Fantastic photos of those birds.
Sue
What beautiful birds and what a thrill to have them feed from your hand like that.
I can imagine their conversation when you returned along the trail - "quick, quick, here comes the Peanut Lady again!"
Such fun :)
Those are some great pictures! I'm impressed that you were able to get them to eat from your hand like that.
I have seen gray jays do that, but not blue jays.
I don't mind the blue jays and like to listen to their imitations of other bird sounds. I sometimes put out peanuts on a platform feeder so I can try to photograph them from my kitchen window. They swoop in and before I can focus properly they are gone and so are the peanuts!💖
That is so cool that he ate right out of your hand! Those blue jays are absolutely gorgeous - I love their markings.
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