Blue Jay

The Blue Jay is a striking 11-inch bird with bright blue above with white on wings and tail and light gray below. Both male and female look alike. The are aggressive and crafty. Their favorite food is acorns, but they also like to each tree seeds, most any kind of nut, grains, fruits, insects, fish, salamanders, and sometimes small birds and eggs in nests. They build bulky nests from 5 to 50 feet above the ground, that are well hidden in thickets. Both male and female gather sticks, twigs, bark, and leaves for the nest and then line it with root lets. They lay 4 or 5 eggs that are olive or buff-colored with dark brown spots. The eggs hatch in 18 days. The youngsters can fly in about 3 weeks. You can attract Blue Jays to your yard by planting sunflowers or offering sunflower seeds in a feeder, along with water and suet.

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