Male Blue Jay in a tree

Blue Jays, despite their undeserved reputation as bullies, are very highly desirable backyard birds. While it is true that Blue Jays may at times chase other, non-predatory birds, Blue Jays are far more helpful than their reputation suggests, and therefore are beneficial to other birds in the area.

Jays are very aggressive towards predators, and will chase off predators many times larger than themselves. Their vigilance helps smaller birds, because when the Jays start their alarm calls, most other birds know to hide. And Jays will often band together to drive off really big predators such as owls, coyotes, and foxes from the neighbourhood, and keep chasing them until the predators decide that their efforts are better spent elsewhere.

Jays are very highly adapted to humans, and will not feel threatened (although they may dive-bomb people who come too close to their nests) by people generally. And the beauty of having Blue Jays as your backyard companions is that Jays will eat almost anything edible: bugs, insect larvae and eggs, picnic food left alone too long, seeds, and may even chase and eat young snakes and lizards.

Blue Jays are highly curious and intelligent. These birds have been recorded to devise and use tools to obtain food, as well as to cache food and remember its location for a long while. Some birds will even learn to mimic human speech, with about the same capacity for learning and mimicry as crows. Blue Jays prefer lightly wooded land, with a mixture of evergreens, oaks, beeches, and other trees (oaks are popular for their acorns). However, where trees are not available, Blue Jays are extremely adaptable and have been known to nest in letter boxes, packing crates, or anywhere they feel safe.

As with every other blue coloured bird, the Blue Jay gets its blue colour not from pigment in the feathers, but by a unique interference with light known as Rayleigh scattering. These birds are noisy and gregarious, and will even snatch up brightly coloured or reflective objects and play with them as toys until they lose interest. Their social structure is extremely complex, and they have been observed in all kinds of mischievous behaviours. For example, a Blue Jay that has stolen food from other birds’ caches will note if it is being observed by other birds; if so, it will later move the food when it is not being watched. So enjoy these beautiful and fun birds as your backyard companions!