Your Lake Arrowhead Realtor would like to share some local Lake Arrowhead Information with you.
My name is Missy and I am a bird-watcher. I watch a lotta birds, but the one that drives me absolutely crazy, is the Steller Jay! They swoop down and land on the birdie feeder thingy that the Mr. & Mrs. have anchored to an old tree just outside, and peer over at me. I know what they're thinking... Ha ha ha, you can't catch me. They're right. I'm usually stuck on a window seal behind a pane of glass. DRAT!
I know some folks call 'em Blue Jays, which our little town of Blue Jay was named after. But those folks have been wrong for decades. I know, because I know my species of birds.
Steller Jays are related to the Blue Jay, which are native North-American feathered friends, but the Steller Jays have a black head. That's how I tell them apart. Like most of my feline pals, I love watching birds. But to be perfectly honestly, I'd rather get up close and a tad more personal with 'em.
Steller Jays are LOUD. Oh man, you have no idea how loud they squawk at me sometimes. And they're pretty brave (or maybe a little nuts) because they will just sit there on that birdie feeder thingy and stare at me. STARE, I tell you. Let me share a couple other things you may not know about these rascals:
- They're named after a fella, Georg Wilhelm Steller, who discovered them in 1741
- They're in the same family as the crows, ravens, magpies & nutcrackers.
- Their diet may include seeds, nuts, berries, other fruit and they've even been known to cobble up eggs, small rodents, and nestlings. I heard some folks say they have eaten snakes and lizards. Yuck!
- They lay about six eggs and the eggs are oval in shape and kind of glossy. Those eggs hatch in about 17 to 18 days.
Now Blue Jays (real Blue Jays) are, in my esteemed opinion, much more handsome than the Steller Jay. Sssshhhh, don't say I said that because I'll deny it all day long.
So the next time you see one of our Blue Jays in Blue Jay, you'll know they are nothing more than impostors.
Okay... back to bird watching now.
Kat DeLong Copyright © 2010
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Kat this is so cute...I didn't realize there were the Stellar Jays...That cat of yours must go crazy watching them birds...Thanks Jen
Jen: Missy has a love-hate relationship with them. -;)
kAt
Blue Jays are pretty birds but can they sure do damage
This beautiful Blue Jay was posing for the photograph. I bet your cat goes nuts watching them.
Tom: They certainly can!
Kay: Missy does get rattled when the birds "tempt" her. :-)