Any birdwatchers?

[brunettebaby92]

Oddly, the blue jays rarely visit my feeder. I have no idea why, but it certainly makes life easier for the smaller birds.

Truly. It’s not that they aren’t lovely to look at, but such bullies

 

[liqueur]

Truly. It’s not that they aren’t lovely to look at, but such bullies

They really are. And there are plenty around me. Initially, I put up a platform feeder as well as my hanging feeder— hoping that would make it easier for the bluejays and they'd leave the hanging feeder for the smaller birds. But for whatever reason, they come only occasionally.

 

[SimonDoom]

Truly. It’s not that they aren’t lovely to look at, but such bullies

We have scrub jays here, not blue jays, but the personality is the same. Irascible and aggressive. I throw them peanuts to keep them off the bird feeder.

 

[Five_Inch_Heels]

I only get the Blue squawkers a few weeks each spring and fall. They must just pass through here.

 

[brunettebaby92]

I only get the Blue squawkers a few weeks each spring and fall. They must just pass through here.

If it’s the spring and fall, sounds like you’re getting migratory visitors. That’s always a treat in my book.

 

[Comentarista82]

They really are. And there are plenty around me. Initially, I put up a platform feeder as well as my hanging feeder— hoping that would make it easier for the bluejays and they'd leave the hanging feeder for the smaller birds. But for whatever reason, they come only occasionally.

Here's one time the blue jay did NOT succeed at bullying: an angry cardinal drove it off (initially). I was watching this via FB and saw it the day it came out. I still laugh about this:

 

[Five_Inch_Heels]

That doesn't look like any BlueJay I ever saw.

 

[Five_Inch_Heels]

Who has it backwards?

Cardinals, Hummingbirds (some), woodpeckers, pheasants, peacocks, probably others .....


The males are more colorful.


Humans?

Not.

 

[MelissaBaby]

That doesn't look like any BlueJay I ever saw.

First birds is a starling, the jay comes after.

 

[Comentarista82]

Interesting. I've noted that Merlin seems to get confused with the scarlet tanager, also, although at the moment I can't think who it's confusing it with.

Meanwhile: summer or winter, tufted titmice are the most faithful and regular visitors to my feeder, and ubiquitous in the trees and bushes around my house. Yet time and again— and this has been going on for at least a year— Merlin will say of them, “unlikely in your area today."

The first one that comes to mind is an American Robin. Cadence and pitch are very close. It could definitely confuse it with the Summer Tanager and maybe a slight distant second is the Rose-breasted Grosbeak.

 

[SimonDoom]

Here's one time the blue jay did NOT succeed at bullying: an angry cardinal drove it off (initially). I was watching this via FB and saw it the day it came out. I still laugh about this:

That's a wimpy bluejay. It's going to take a lot of shit from the other bluejays for that performance.

 

[MillieDynamite]

Me Mum is an eagle watcher; her favorite mommy is in the hospital right now. The famous internet-monitored bald eagle from Big Bear, California, widely believed to be Jackie, was rescued on July 18, 2026, after a territorial fight and is recovering at the Ojai Raptor Center.

 

[MillieDynamite]

That reminds me of the play, 1776, and the cluck cluck of an eaglet being born. No, a turkey.

Me Mum is an eagle watcher; her favorite mommy is in the hospital right now. The famous internet-monitored bald eagle from Big Bear, California, widely believed to be Jackie, was rescued on July 18, 2026, after a territorial fight and is recovering at the Ojai Raptor Center.

 

[Comentarista82]

Simon:

I think this video will delight you and perhaps the other jays taught those two we saw before to "blue jay up"?

https://www.facebook.com/share/v/1G6voXRCj7/

 

[SimonDoom]

Simon:

I think this video will delight you and perhaps the other jays taught those two we saw before to "blue jay up"?

https://www.facebook.com/share/v/1G6voXRCj7/

That's delightful. It reminds me of my backyard, where the squirrels and jays, and sometimes crows, scrap over the peanuts I throw to them.

 

[Comentarista82]

I imagine others likely surmised this, but I finally looked this up and it's 1 of 2 articles I found how heat affects birds:

https://georgiawildlife.com/out-my-backdoor-heat-affects-birds-too

 

[MillieDynamite]

Momma eagle isn't doing well, Mum's down about that. She switched it off for now, watching bears gobble salmon this week.

 

[ColtonWrites]

I bought a big bird feeder for my yard! Not sure yet where to hang it though - torn on whether I want to mount it on the fence or hang it from a tree.

 

[Five_Inch_Heels]

Either of those would be inviting squirrels, racoons and anything else that climbs.

Best is a smooth round post/pole like a piece of pipe set in concrete.

Even then, you may still need a critter baffle.

 

[ColtonWrites]

Either of those would be inviting squirrels, racoons and anything else that climbs.

Best is a smooth round post/pole like a piece of pipe set in concrete.

Even then, you may still need a critter baffle.

Hmmm okay....that makes sense.

We really want to attract crows, but everything that attracts crows also feeds squirrels.

 

[Five_Inch_Heels]

Crows are garbage birds.

Same as Seagulls and Grackles.

I go for songbirds in a wide range of colors.

 

[ColtonWrites]

My wife is a witch. In like, the pagan sense. She says we need crows. *shrug* I just buy the bird feeder.

 

[Britva415]

I imagine others likely surmised this, but I finally looked this up and it's 1 of 2 articles I found how heat affects birds:

https://georgiawildlife.com/out-my-backdoor-heat-affects-birds-too

It has been super hot and dry here, and the water in the bath disappears very quickly. I have to refill it at least once a week. In the cooler months (still without rain, just lower temperatures) it lasts quite a while longer.

Now I wonder if it's more than just evaporation. Maybe the hot birds are splashing it all out instead of just drinking it? I'm convinced they can't be drinking the amount that's disappearing.

 

[Five_Inch_Heels]

^^^ Mine is an inverted satellite dish mounted to a 55 gallon barrel with a pump/fountain/drain set up. Rain helps keep it full, but I still have to add water more often than I would expect to.

 

[liqueur]

It has been super hot and dry here, and the water in the bath disappears very quickly. I have to refill it at least once a week. In the cooler months (still without rain, just lower temperatures) it lasts quite a while longer.

Now I wonder if it's more than just evaporation. Maybe the hot birds are splashing it all out instead of just drinking it? I'm convinced they can't be drinking the amount that's disappearing.

They do love to splash. Years ago, I had a conure. My wife would turn the water on in the sink, a steady stream but no more. The conure would get in there, and oh what a commotion! It was the avian equivalent of six kids playing in a pool. By the time she was done there'd be water all over the kitchen.