Jay behavior: an investigation costing meerly peanuts.

[Hill]

I've noticed when feeding Western Scrub Jays whole roasted unsalted peanuts, that initially they are simply opportunists, grabbing a nut and leaving as quickly as possible. Once they get used to a consistant feeding area they slow their pace and seem to fall into one of two separate groups.

 

The first group I call once-lers . They pick up a peanut, put it down, then try another, and so on, sometimes testing 5-6 or more before deciding which one is the best. They seem to be weighing the nuts comparitively, but may be conducting some other suitability test.

 

The second group are two-fers. They don't test the nuts the same way. They choose one and then do their best, sometimes taking over a minute, to cram another nut into their beak. Any nut will do as long as it also fits. After feeding this way for a while they often reappear with their mandibles open a small amount, as if the muscles/ligaments have gotten a bit stretched.

 

I'm curious if Western Scrub Jays in other places behave the same way. There are actually two other Scrub Jays - Island (endemic to Santa Cruz Island) and Florida. Mexican Jays are similar. Jays of the genus Cyanocitta, Blue Jays and Steller's Jays are also good candidates because they are about the same size as Western Scrub Jays. There's even a Eurasian Jay which seems comparible. So this experiment may work in much of North America, and into Europe.

 

I always feed our local birds when I'm in my yard and then collect any remaining nuts before leaving. Too many crows and squirrels are attracted otherwise. I place the nuts on a low table to allow better observation.

 

Any Hypographers up for this? It's not rocket science (for that see the lunar X-Prize thread ) and costs only peanuts and minimal time (15-20 minutes at a time).

[Cedars]

I've noticed when feeding Western Scrub Jays whole roasted unsalted peanuts, that initially they are simply opportunists, grabbing a nut and leaving as quickly as possible. Once they get used to a consistant feeding area they slow their pace and seem to fall into one of two separate groups.

 

The first group I call once-lers . They pick up a peanut, put it down, then try another, and so on, sometimes testing 5-6 or more before deciding which one is the best. They seem to be weighing the nuts comparitively, but may be conducting some other suitability test.

 

The second group are two-fers. They don't test the nuts the same way. They choose one and then do their best, sometimes taking over a minute, to cram another nut into their beak. Any nut will do as long as it also fits. After feeding this way for a while they often reappear with their mandibles open a small amount, as if the muscles/ligaments have gotten a bit stretched.

 

I'm curious if Western Scrub Jays in other places behave the same way. There are actually two other Scrub Jays - Island (endemic to Santa Cruz Island) and Florida. Mexican Jays are similar. Jays of the genus Cyanocitta, Blue Jays and Steller's Jays are also good candidates because they are about the same size as Western Scrub Jays. There's even a Eurasian Jay which seems comparible. So this experiment may work in much of North America, and into Europe.

 

The Blue Jays I attract to the dog food I put out for them will show both behaviors here (learned about dog food, Purina Hi-Pro, from Red-headed Woodpeckers who were landing on the dog dish to take food) . What I do not know is which birds are displaying this behavior (cuz who can tell one blue jay from another for the most part) or are they mixing it up dependent on other factors, such as hunger. I havent paid that detailed of attention to see if the two-fer behavior is more common during different conditions, such as during drought, after heavy snow, after bug killing frosts, after the blackberries are done, etc.

 

I have a few thoughts on this. Younger birds have not learned hording skills or have not encountered food shortages/extreme competition to learn to take as much as possible. You could vary your habits and leave the peanuts out more to see if an increase in food supply changes two-fer behaviors, say next year after the broods are moving around.

 

Another thing to ponder is territory issues. Your oncers may be within their territory and not feeling the pressure so much as an invader/newbie to the neighborhood.

 

Another piece to consider is whether seasonally, do you have migrating birds? For example, it was long believed that Blue Jays did not migrate but a lady working on her thesis chose Jays (in nebraska I believe) and tagged birds. She found the Jays in that area migrated and the birds she saw in the summer were different than the birds that she saw in the winter. I dont know if such studies have been done on scrub jays in your area. For this area, the migration may not occur depending on food availability, and other Blue Jays have been observed moving a few hundred miles from their summer areas.

[Hill]

What I do not know is which birds are displaying this behavior (cuz who can tell one blue jay from another for the most part) or are they mixing it up dependent on other factors, such as hunger. I havent paid that detailed of attention to see if the two-fer behavior is more common during different conditions, such as during drought, after heavy snow, after bug killing frosts, after the blackberries are done, etc.

 

Here in Southern California, between 1000-2000', the seasons are much less variable, and yearly drought, with no rain from May to October, is the norm. (Though a rare last day of summer storm dropped 2" here about a week ago) Though we live in a suburban setting with fairly dense (small yards - our back yard is only 0.05 acres) housing, there is a 1.5 acre undeveloped lot right next door. Chaparral habitat can be found within about 1/8 of a mile and continuous chaparal extending into the Angeles National Forest within 1/4 mile. The behavior is unchanged throughout the year.

We have had one consistant pair of Scrub Jays that lives in an area with many mature trees to our west. They always approach from that direction, and the pair which we call Onceler and Twofer are the original birds in which I noted this behavior. No way to tell for sure which is male or female, and no way to be positive they always play the same roles in collection behavior. But they almost always arrive together and each collects nuts in its own way.

 

I have a few thoughts on this. Younger birds have not learned hording skills or have not encountered food shortages/extreme competition to learn to take as much as possible. You could vary your habits and leave the peanuts out more to see if an increase in food supply changes two-fer behaviors, say next year after the broods are moving around.

 

Yes, younger recently fledged birds, just sneak in when they can and leave with whatever they can grab. (Sadly no young produced this year) After a few weeks, they drift away to seek out their own territories.

 

Sometimes peanuts are out all day. The only observed changes in collection behavior are the hiding of nuts in the yard within sight of the feeding station (though I never have seen a two-fer do this) or just to not come back to the yard that day.

 

Another thing to ponder is territory issues. Your oncers may be within their territory and not feeling the pressure so much as an invader/newbie to the neighborhood.

 

Yes. I agree.

 

Another piece to consider is whether seasonally, do you have migrating birds? For example, it was long believed that Blue Jays did not migrate but a lady working on her thesis chose Jays (in nebraska I believe) and tagged birds. She found the Jays in that area migrated and the birds she saw in the summer were different than the birds that she saw in the winter. I dont know if such studies have been done on scrub jays in your area. For this area, the migration may not occur depending on food availability, and other Blue Jays have been observed moving a few hundred miles from their summer areas.

 

There is no migration of Scrub Jays here, but there is the occasional arrival of individuals or pairs into the yard. There was quite a "disagreement" in the yard an hour or so ago. A pair arrived from the east. There was much chasing and screaming at each other. The interlopers grabbed the nuts quickly and left.

About a year ago another pair set up a territory to the east and at first behaved in the way of this newer pair. But once they settled in to their territory, they also showed a division in the way they collected peanuts. There was a onceler and a twofer. Still later two more birds, which may or may not have been paired, made for a real circus of yelling and rushing among the six jays. The original two kept up their habits usually since they were stilled dominant. The second pair was a little less consistant. The last two birds always rushed and grabbed, often with a more established bird in persuit.

[Cedars]

No way to tell for sure which is male or female, and no way to be positive they always play the same roles in collection behavior. But they almost always arrive together and each collects nuts in its own way.

 

Yes, younger recently fledged birds, just sneak in when they can and leave with whatever they can grab. (Sadly no young produced this year) After a few weeks, they drift away to seek out their own territories.

 

Sometimes peanuts are out all day. The only observed changes in collection behavior are the hiding of nuts in the yard within sight of the feeding station (though I never have seen a two-fer do this) or just to not come back to the yard that day.

 

There is no migration of Scrub Jays here, but there is the occasional arrival of individuals or pairs into the yard. There was quite a "disagreement" in the yard an hour or so ago. A pair arrived from the east. There was much chasing and screaming at each other. The interlopers grabbed the nuts quickly and left.

About a year ago another pair set up a territory to the east and at first behaved in the way of this newer pair. But once they settled in to their territory, they also showed a division in the way they collected peanuts. There was a onceler and a twofer. Still later two more birds, which may or may not have been paired, made for a real circus of yelling and rushing among the six jays. The original two kept up their habits usually since they were stilled dominant. The second pair was a little less consistant. The last two birds always rushed and grabbed, often with a more established bird in persuit.

 

hmmm.

 

For some types of birds, the female is the larger of the two. This appears to hold true for Blue Jays around here after watching them plump up with eggs in the spring. I wonder if you staked out an area to the west and observed for an hour or two to try to establish a scrub jay count. You may have Jays waiting for the dominant pair to feast, then a line of lesser birds coming in from that western area. For example, my last trip to Crex Meadows, I came to a spot of a few med growth oaks and they were just covered with Blue Jays. My count was 28 birds as they moved away. Most of them went in a main group of birds, but others flew off in groups of 2 - 5. Crex is a migration staging area, but it did surprise me the large concentration of these birds in that one spot. For the rest of the meadows that day, I saw small groups of 2 or 3 birds (assuming family groups).

 

Might be worth the effort next spring/summer, if you were able to locate a nest or two and mark some primary feathers on chicks with dots of something... maybe food coloring... I wouldnt want to mess around with cutting feathers on birds not yet in flight. It might help you determine whos doing what in the oncer-twofer aspect.

[Ed8r]

I'm disappointed to see that this thread died. I came to read about scrub jay behavior because I also feed raw unsalted peanuts to lots of different pairs of jays. I'd love to discuss different behavior, calls, and personalities with someone else who is observing them.

[Hill]

I'm disappointed to see that this thread died. I came to read about scrub jay behavior because I also feed raw unsalted peanuts to lots of different pairs of jays. I'd love to discuss different behavior, calls, and personalities with someone else who is observing them.

 

Things have changed in my area since my last post on this. Several pair of crows have nested nearby this spring. It may be coincidental or it may not, but our Scrub Jay population has crashed. Now there is only one jay, or at least one at a time, that appears occasionally. Crows often get any peanuts I put out unless I literally stand guard. I have found baby bird feathers in our birdbaths along with peanut shells and whatever junk the crows drag in. Among the feathers I have found one set that were jay feathers.

 

So unfortunately the peanut carrying observations are almost at a standstill. The one jay that takes them often grabs the first one it can and flies off. I'm hoping things improve in the future.

[Ed8r]

Sorry to hear that. Since I toss peanuts one at a time, I can better control who gets them. I try to scare the crows off and the jays seem to know that they are "allowed" to swoop in and pick them up. At one feeding site, I will sometimes have a huge group of jays kind of playing musical chairs, as the next one down in the local pecking order grabs his/hers, they all move up one position and wait for the next nut to be tossed.

 

But at another location, I had a sad story. Some low brush and overgrowth of vines and shrubs on a fence was stripped off and cut down. After that the female of the pair I'd been feeding there stopped coming. The male still swoops over almost as soon as I arrive . . . flying to my car mirror and landing to wait for me to hand him one, and yesterday he had a juvenile with him who also learned to fly up to the mirror for a handout. Whether the female is still around and just letting Dad do the training, or whether she is gone for good, I don't know.

 

In any case, I understand about crows. The ones around here seem to have become more aggressive this year, perhaps indicating a depleted food supply? They seem less likely to be scared off by my advances than they were a year ago.

[Lancewen]

Things have changed in my area since my last post on this. Several pair of crows have nested nearby this spring. It may be coincidental or it may not, but our Scrub Jay population has crashed. Now there is only one jay, or at least one at a time, that appears occasionally. Crows often get any peanuts I put out unless I literally stand guard. I have found baby bird feathers in our birdbaths along with peanut shells and whatever junk the crows drag in. Among the feathers I have found one set that were jay feathers.

 

So unfortunately the peanut carrying observations are almost at a standstill. The one jay that takes them often grabs the first one it can and flies off. I'm hoping things improve in the future.

 

I live in Washington state and have been feeding stellar jays daily for about 2 years now. Much of what you said seems to be true for these jays too. During the Summer the number of jays is only about 5 or 6, Usually a mature pair and some young ones. Then when the weather starts getting colder, I can get daily jays counts up to between 30 & 40. Very hard on the peanut budget, however I buy my unsalted peanuts in the shell from Costco (very large bag for about $7.50). Anybody that knows a cheaper source of peanuts please tell me. As to any leftover peanuts, that has never happened to me. No matter how many I put out they are all gone in about 15 minutes. They always take every peanut. I know for a fact that they hide the ones they don't eat right away. As far as two-fers, I noticed some jays try to stuff one down in the throat so they can pick up another one.

 

As far as crows go, I get lots of them in the Summer, but their numbers drop to zero when the weather gets colder and the jay counts start rising. I then get high jay counts until Spring when they get interested in breeding, and the crows start coming back (I hate crows), the crows are the bird bully's of the bird world and they crack and eat the peanuts where they lie, which makes a mess at the feeding site.

[Turtle]

Just dropping by with a Jay photo from last Winter. I'm in new digs and feeding birds again, but the Jays prefer a pair of Mountain Ash trees nearby to my offering of seed and suet. I don't do the peanuts as I'm allergic to them, but as you see in this shot the black-oil Sunflower seeds have the Jay's attention.

 

Well, hoping to coax Hill et al out of their lairs. See ya in the funny papers.

 

PS Erhm...I don't recall per the OP how many seeds this Jay was taking at once. I accept demerits due.

 

Edited February 18, 2014 by Turtle

[Hill]

Nice image Mr Turtle. And arKane, I too find the Costco J-nuts the best bargain. 

 

My jays have come and gone and come again. The departure of the crows made it more likely that I put nuts out. There are 3-4 active ones these days but I haven't watched them to closely - I leave that to my indoor cat. She hears the rattling of the peanut can and takes a seat by the window. 

 

I admit I haven't been observing as closely as I once did. When our temps here in Southern CA moderate a bit I'll spend more time watching again. 

 

 

 

Semi-technical question. Is there a way to add an image directly from my hard drive or does it need to have an on-line url first?

[Turtle]

Nice image Mr Turtle. And arKane, I too find the Costco J-nuts the best bargain. 

 

My jays have come and gone and come again. The departure of the crows made it more likely that I put nuts out. There are 3-4 active ones these days but I haven't watched them to closely - I leave that to my indoor cat. She hears the rattling of the peanut can and takes a seat by the window. 

 

I admit I haven't been observing as closely as I once did. When our temps here in Southern CA moderate a bit I'll spend more time watching again. 

 

 

 

Semi-technical question. Is there a way to add an image directly from my hard drive or does it need to have an on-line url first?

Nice to hear from you Hill. :) I stopped feeding the birds a couple months back as the fallen seed drew a family of rats. When the seed was gone they moved into the compost pile & it took me another month to trap & shoot the whole lot.

 

There is a murder of crows nesting in a nearby Doug Fir grove, but they never came near the feeder nor the Sunflowers I grew this season. They sometimes roost on power lines bordering the yard and caw and I talk to them, but they otherwise avoid the yard. We have a couple of European Ash trees out front and the Jays roost there and presumably eat the berries though I don't watch the front much.

 

On the images, you should be able to use the attachment function to directly upload to a post from your drive.