My backyard birds have me well trained, especially my blue jays. Right after Thanksgiving, I had bought a big bag of seed with lots of peanuts and fruit. Each morning, I would see the jays fly in right after I scattered seeds. When I ran out of that seed, I bought a 40-pound bag at Sam’s Club, the Supreme Mix, the best buy on the market. But this blend has only a few nuts – it’s mostly sunflower, safflower and millet seeds. In the past week or so I haven’t seen any blue jays. Most of all, my jays love peanuts.
So I bought a 5-pound bag of nuts and berries, tossed a couple of scoops on the ground and the blue jays were there the very next morning, squawking and dive bombing for nuts.
I currently have 4 jays – I think a family from last summer. My jays are among my most vocal visitors. If one of them sees a peanut, they tell the world and woe to any hawk who perches on a limb in my back yard. The jays start carrying on and draw literally dozens of other blue jays. I don’t know where they come from, but they all come. Eventually, the hawk leaves the premises – too much squawking.
A few summers back, Nancy and I would sit on the patio and munch on Virginia peanuts, occasionally tossing a handful on the patio. Our blue jays took notice and after that, any time we sat outside, the jays came a’begging.
They are neat birds. When this bag of nuts and berries runs out, I’ll buy more.
