Hi All:

Here's some comments on scrub-jays from another Ruth.
I have seen them regularly since relocating to Ballard 3+ years ago. I have
to admit that, despite an excess of corvids in this neighborhood, I love
them.
But - I wonder just what percent of their diet in this neighborhood is
songbird eggs & young. As I walked around my neighborhood this summer,
particularly from mid-July through August, I often located them when I
heard scolding by chickadees, house finches, and house sparrows. At first,
when I heard scolding, I expected to find either a cat or (I hoped) a small
raptor. In every instance, I found a scrub-jay(s) messing around in a large
shrub or small tree, with a small group of agitated passerines near by,
either fluttering around or perched on wires above. While I've never seen a
scrub-jay with a nestling or egg in its beak, I would bet money that it
happened.
Since early September, I've seen the scrub-jays foraging on fruits and nuts
and other plant material, and I haven't heard small birds scolding them,
except in late afternoon when they dive into a monkey puzzle tree that hosts
a major house sparrow convention at that time of day.

Ruth Taylor
Seattle/Ballard
rutht at seanet.com

-----Original Message-----
From: Robert Sundstrom <ixoreus at scattercreek.com>
To: godwit at worldnet.att.net <godwit at worldnet.att.net>; tweeters
<tweeters at u.washington.edu>
Date: Friday, September 19, 2003 12:00 PM
Subject: Re: scrub-jay in NE Seattle


>Dennis, Ruth, Tweeters,
>
>The chat about scrub-jays is intriguing. Western Scrub-Jays are thoroughly
>entrenched in the Tenino area, seen all around town and the surrounding
>non-forested areas. Apparently they were newcomers here 15 years ago. I
>find them handsome and fascinating birds. Ruth mentioned putting out suet
>now - our most regular visitors to a starling-proof suet feeder have been a
>family of scrub-jays. This might be a good way to help keep them around.
>
>The question is: just how much do you want to keep them around? They are,
>it seems, both astute and determined nest predators of smaller birds,
>although this is clearly not all they eat. A longer term resident of the
>Tenino area has found them robbing both Chestnut-backed and Black-capped
>chickadee nests, and others I know who have lived around scrub-jays in
>Oregon tell similar stories. One watched over our occupied nest boxes with
>great regularity. Areas like Seattle that already have a stunning crow
>population may not benefit from another species that is relatively bold
>around humans and preys in part on smaller nesting birds. This doesn't
mean
>I advocate trying to stop their population from spreading, but simply want
>to raise this point of natural history.
>
>Bob
>
>Bob Sundstrom
>ixoreus at scattercreek.com
>Tenino, WA
>
>----- Original Message -----
>From: "Ruth Sullivan" <godwit at worldnet.att.net>
>To: <nettasmith at comcast.net>; <tweeters at u.washington.edu>
>Sent: Thursday, September 18, 2003 6:16 PM
>Subject: Re: scrub-jay in NE Seattle
>
>
>> Hi Dennis &Tweeters,
>> We had two Scrub-jays on September the first flying over our house low,it
>> looked as if there maybe landing on a tall fir tree,but flying in
>direction
>> Point Defiance.This is the first Scrub-Jay here in our area.
>> I enjoying my Anna's Hummingbirds coming to the feeder now more often.We
>> have one Adult male two immature males and one female.there could be
>more.Is
>> time to put the suet out soon.
>>
>> Cheers Ruth Sullivan
>> Tacoma
>> ----- Original Message -----
>> From: "Netta Smith" <nettasmith at comcast.net>
>> To: <tweeters at u.washington.edu>
>> Sent: Thursday, September 18, 2003 3:03 PM
>> Subject: scrub-jay in NE Seattle
>>
>>
>> > Hello, tweets.
>> >
>> > I haven't been tuned in to the list, so maybe they are all over Seattle
>> now,
>> > but I was tickled to see a scrub-jay fly over NE 50th St. just east of
>the
>> > I-5 freeway at 2 pm today (9/18). First one I've seen in the northeast
>> part
>> > of Seattle, and only a few miles from my house!
>> >
>> > This is the time of year during which young birds are dispersing, so
>even
>> > resident species can turn up in new places. I'm glad some birds are on
>the
>> > move, as I have seen no migrant birds in my yard lately, even when I
>stay
>> > home for a day.
>> >
>> > Dennis Paulson
>> > --
>> > Netta Smith and Dennis Paulson
>> > 1724 NE 98 St.
>> > Seattle, WA 98115
>> >
>> >
>>
>
>