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If you are ever bored and you have a backyard try watching Blue/Stellar’s/Eurasian Jays for a bit. They are very closely related to crows (both in corvidae) and

If you are ever bored and you have a backyard try watching Blue/Stellar’s/Eurasian Jays for a bit. They are very closely related to crows (both in corvidae) and very intelligent. They are really social and act almost like a primate. A lot of fun to watch them interact with each other.

tzs 6y ago
If you have Steller's jays (I don't know if the others also do this) try putting out some in-shell peanuts. They will pick up one, then put it down and pick up another, and so on, sometimes going back to recheck one, until finally deciding which one to fly off with. They are quick picky. When the last peanut is gone, sometimes I put out more. And sometimes then I'll see one or two of the jays come back, still carrying the peanuts they had from before. They will put down the old peanut they brought back, and then go through the whole selection process again.
- mutagen 6y ago
  My dad watches the Stellar’s fly in with peanuts and hide them in his yard, sometimes deciding that the spot they choose isn’t right or possibly another observed their hiding spot and moving the plant to a new location.
- peanut_worm 6y ago
  They certainly do love peanuts. I had a Blue Jay “knock” on my door the other day to remind me to put out more peanuts.
- bix6 6y ago
  I put out peanuts for my jays and crows, it’s one of the highlights of my morning. I also noticed how picky they are. Meanwhile, the crows just swoop in and grab a few at a time. The jays seemed to accept me the quickest and they consistently get the closest. I tried hand feeding the other day but we aren’t quite there yet. It’s such a treat having bird friends!
  - rhn_mk1 6y ago
    How long did it take for them to get so friendly? What was the baseline bird-friendliness level in your area?
    - bix6 6y ago
      I moved 8 months ago and put out feeders almost immediately. It only took a few months for the most skittish to get comfortable and I honestly haven’t tried as hard as I could have. The jays were fairly comfortable within maybe a month - they can’t resist the peanuts haha. My place has some nice trees and shrubs so I think they were already comfortable in the yard. I don’t really see many feeders elsewhere in my neighborhood but I’ve passed a few houses where I’ve noticed significant bird song and I’ve seen a few houses with bird houses. I think a lot of it comes down to the vibe you give them. I spend a lot of time thinking about how they interpret my actions so that I don’t scare/annoy them. Small things like slow movements, not staring at them, letting them dictate the encounter, etc.
  - clairity 6y ago
    i’m sure you’ll get to that point eventually. i had a group of 3 ducks (not the wittiest of birds) that i’d tamed that way as a child using bread bits. they’d eventually eat from my hand and let me hold them and pet them. =)
    - bix6 6y ago
      Wow, I can’t wait for one of them to nuzzle up to me!
- dvh 6y ago
  How do we know this is not Jay typing?
  - temp0826 6y ago
    Sometimes I think there are mostly parrots on HN ;)
- jschwartzi 6y ago
  When you're doing this, please be careful to pick up the leftover peanuts. One of our neighbors does this and our property is constantly being invaded by rats who are attracted to her discarded peanuts.
  - hackeraccount 6y ago
    I live in a medium sized city and I see people throwing bread on the ground "for the pigeons." The pigeons eat maybe 75% - the rest is for the rats. Drives me up a wall.
    - TeMPOraL 6y ago
      In my hometown (Kraków), pigeons are considered to be rats with wings... but they're also sort of a symbol, because to this day they flock around the city's main square. Possibly because we used to feed them there. When I was a kid, old ladies would sell grain in plastic cups for people to throw to the pigeons. The moment you poured some grain on your hand, you were suddenly surrounded by a hundred birds. It was an attraction for both tourists and children. I haven't seen that practiced in a decade or more, I suppose feeding the pigeons became illegal at some point.
  - peanut_worm 6y ago
    Additionally because peanuts can grow botulism very quickly if they get damp
LegitShady 6y ago
I occasionally give the family of magpies nearby some plain ground beef (cooked) like maybe a handful of times per season. They always visit when I'm outside and they're attentive and interesting.
- peanut_worm 6y ago
  If you leave out (unsalted) fat trimmings from meat it can also attract Woodpeckers. Suet will attract even more.
- emsimot 6y ago
  Just a heads up, I listened to a podcast about bird feeding recently and they mentioned that ground beef can cause serious bone density issues in magpies and crows, they're used to eating the bones of small animals alongside the meat and with a full belly of mince they won't seek them out. May be worth looking into! They suggested mixing ground-up calcium supplements into the beef.

tzs 6y ago

If you have Steller's jays (I don't know if the others also do this) try putting out some in-shell peanuts. They will pick up one, then put it down and pick up another, and so on, sometimes going back to recheck one, until finally deciding which one to fly off with. They are quick picky. When the last peanut is gone, sometimes I put out more. And sometimes then I'll see one or two of the jays come back, still carrying the peanuts they had from before. They will put down the old peanut they brought back, and then go through the whole selection process again.

mutagen 6y ago
My dad watches the Stellar’s fly in with peanuts and hide them in his yard, sometimes deciding that the spot they choose isn’t right or possibly another observed their hiding spot and moving the plant to a new location.
peanut_worm 6y ago
They certainly do love peanuts. I had a Blue Jay “knock” on my door the other day to remind me to put out more peanuts.
bix6 6y ago
I put out peanuts for my jays and crows, it’s one of the highlights of my morning. I also noticed how picky they are. Meanwhile, the crows just swoop in and grab a few at a time. The jays seemed to accept me the quickest and they consistently get the closest. I tried hand feeding the other day but we aren’t quite there yet. It’s such a treat having bird friends!
- rhn_mk1 6y ago
  How long did it take for them to get so friendly? What was the baseline bird-friendliness level in your area?
  - bix6 6y ago
    I moved 8 months ago and put out feeders almost immediately. It only took a few months for the most skittish to get comfortable and I honestly haven’t tried as hard as I could have. The jays were fairly comfortable within maybe a month - they can’t resist the peanuts haha. My place has some nice trees and shrubs so I think they were already comfortable in the yard. I don’t really see many feeders elsewhere in my neighborhood but I’ve passed a few houses where I’ve noticed significant bird song and I’ve seen a few houses with bird houses. I think a lot of it comes down to the vibe you give them. I spend a lot of time thinking about how they interpret my actions so that I don’t scare/annoy them. Small things like slow movements, not staring at them, letting them dictate the encounter, etc.
- clairity 6y ago
  i’m sure you’ll get to that point eventually. i had a group of 3 ducks (not the wittiest of birds) that i’d tamed that way as a child using bread bits. they’d eventually eat from my hand and let me hold them and pet them. =)
  - bix6 6y ago
    Wow, I can’t wait for one of them to nuzzle up to me!
dvh 6y ago
How do we know this is not Jay typing?
- temp0826 6y ago
  Sometimes I think there are mostly parrots on HN ;)
jschwartzi 6y ago
When you're doing this, please be careful to pick up the leftover peanuts. One of our neighbors does this and our property is constantly being invaded by rats who are attracted to her discarded peanuts.
- hackeraccount 6y ago
  I live in a medium sized city and I see people throwing bread on the ground "for the pigeons." The pigeons eat maybe 75% - the rest is for the rats. Drives me up a wall.
  - TeMPOraL 6y ago
    In my hometown (Kraków), pigeons are considered to be rats with wings... but they're also sort of a symbol, because to this day they flock around the city's main square. Possibly because we used to feed them there. When I was a kid, old ladies would sell grain in plastic cups for people to throw to the pigeons. The moment you poured some grain on your hand, you were suddenly surrounded by a hundred birds. It was an attraction for both tourists and children. I haven't seen that practiced in a decade or more, I suppose feeding the pigeons became illegal at some point.
- peanut_worm 6y ago
  Additionally because peanuts can grow botulism very quickly if they get damp

LegitShady 6y ago

I occasionally give the family of magpies nearby some plain ground beef (cooked) like maybe a handful of times per season. They always visit when I'm outside and they're attentive and interesting.

peanut_worm 6y ago
If you leave out (unsalted) fat trimmings from meat it can also attract Woodpeckers. Suet will attract even more.
emsimot 6y ago
Just a heads up, I listened to a podcast about bird feeding recently and they mentioned that ground beef can cause serious bone density issues in magpies and crows, they're used to eating the bones of small animals alongside the meat and with a full belly of mince they won't seek them out. May be worth looking into! They suggested mixing ground-up calcium supplements into the beef.