Where do these gorgeous corvids live? They are stunning, but sadly I don't think I'll see any in my garden soon (Northern Ireland/North of Ireland - NI for simplicity)
They’re only in the upper Pacific Northwest of the United States and up into Canada, I think. On the bright side, you’ll never have one startle you when it decides it’s Screaming Time
I grew up with a resident neighbourhood peacock. His name was Percy. He lived in my neighbour's tree. Said neighbour was occasionally found throwing stuff into the branches in the early hours as Percy had decided we should all be awake 😂. Thanks for the info. They're beautiful birds.
Corvids are my fav. The Ravens that were common in Door Co Wisconsin are making a really nice comeback along the cliffs of Peninsula State Park that rim the Green Bay area of Lake Michigan. Just beautiful & I love their croaks and clicks.
We have a Scrub Jay that lives in our tree. But he’s a fast one & I haven’t got a photo yet. So, I will submit a humble neighborhood Common Raven for consideration. I do love the dramatic black cape!
I got to see my first one of these earlier this year in my front yard.
I was puzzled af because I had never heard of a jay bird with a black head before! They’re lovely. 😊
Ngl my favorites are the scrub jays, since I see them the most. The scrubies stick around all year, the stellars only show up to scream that the seasons are changing.
I grew up in Toronto and on the island there were a lot of blue jays. I was riding my bike and there were so many flying in front of me, almost like they were showing me the way. It was awesome. They are my favourite birds.
I used to rescue Blue Jay chicks displaced by Starlings. Moms would yell at me when I took box outside to feed them insects When they fledged I put them in trees and parents taught them to fly. Guess they overlooked my smell. Brilliant birds.
Pretty, yes, but definitely not nice and friendly. I put peanuts in the feeder for a group of these, but ran out one day. The leader hopped around a bit, then turned toward my house and let out a 30 second stream of what I assume were corvid obscenities at me, then flew off in a huff.
Stellar Jays are so cool; they always make me think of Lyle Lovett's "Black and Blue." I grew up in the midwest, and never saw them until I was middle aged.
Stellar Blue Jay
So many types of birds dropping numbers. Please people keep 🙏 your cats indoors. They are raising he'll with bird populations 💥 Check Audubon 🐦🪶
My backyard kinda fluctuates between Stellar Jays and Scrub Jays being the largest frequent visitors. Idk if they duke it out behind the scenes or what but we never get both in the same week. Stellar Jays are prettier but their calls are loud and hideous so it's a bit of a tradeoff.
I love all corvids, too. In our neighborhood we are fortunate to have crows, scrub jays, and magpies. I've seen them all band together to chase away hawks in nesting season. It was awesome to behold!
They like peanuts. We have a pair we feed at home, and a pair we feed at work. Some will take the peanuts from our hand, others will not. The cat is entertained, regardless.
I’m still trying to lure my neighborhood murder with peanuts. They don’t partake regularly quite yet. Of course, the squirrels are happy about that. First come, first serve.
As a kid, I cried in shame when tasked with shooting Steller's jays. I'd watched them in the forest around our farm. Beautiful, curious, tenacious creatures. Twenty years later, as a behavioral ecology grad student, I was working in a corvid behavioral neuroscience lab.
What people do to their children!!! And you’ve turned your back to that behavior. Good for you! (And I wonder why they didn’t want the birds near the farm?)
I've had 3 Stellers that I rescued. 2 I found as fledglings & they were adorable & taught me a great deal. I found that they have a hard time detecting water if it doesn't move. I had to drip water into a tiny cup so they could see it there.
Stellers are my favorite! We had one we nicknamed “Punk Youth Steller” because it would harry us daily for nuts. Even cling to our window screen and squawk at us if the blinds were closed.
(Incidentally, though I fully understand why you did so, I'm slightly sad I didn't think to grab a screen cap of my reply to your blue crow pics before you deleted all your content)
I believe this is due to iridescence. The blue pigment is incredibly rare in nature (even the blue LED was very difficult to produce), so normally the "blue" color is produced by microscopic structures refracting and scattering light. Sometimes cameras can amplify these iridescent effects.
I'm gonna guess that's the camera sensor picking up ultraviolet wavelengths that would otherwise be invisible. A lot of birds have bright UV plumage that we trichromats can't see but birds can
Could it be that the camera lens pics up existing colour that the human eye doesn't register, as happens sometimes when photographing northern lights/auroras?
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I'd carry a big bag of peanuts out, "hiding" them (they were out, watching me).
So much fun to watch.
I once watched them steal a loaf of bread from another campsite. I'm evil enough to enjoy watching and do nothing about it.
They are lovely birds.
I was puzzled af because I had never heard of a jay bird with a black head before! They’re lovely. 😊
https://www.massaudubon.org/nature-wildlife/birds/blue-jays
The squirrel alerted me.
Mail to all kids.
https://search.yahoo.com/search?fr=mcafee&type=E211US714G0&p=corvids
I appreciate them. I welcome them. But they are backyard bullies.
So many types of birds dropping numbers. Please people keep 🙏 your cats indoors. They are raising he'll with bird populations 💥 Check Audubon 🐦🪶
Sorta. Only when I'm safely behind glass.
https://bsky.app/profile/nowhere.bsky.social/post/3lbus3srgbs2a
My friend caught this shot when I was with her last year in Colorado. Rocky Mountain National Park October 2023
https://www.reddit.com/r/OutOfTheLoop/comments/3vofr2/how_did_the_phrase_heres_the_thing_originate/
Great scrub jay as well.
Also, my autocorrect has no mirth about itself. 😒 That was way harder to type than it should have been.
Also I find the vocalizations of the Western Scrub Jay ... let's say less melodious than some birds.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6d/Garrulus_glandarius_1_Luc_Viatour.jpg/1200px-Garrulus_glandarius_1_Luc_Viatour.jpg