Corvid ecologists

There's a reason behind my screen handle, and it's not because my actual name is "Jay" (it's not). The blue jay has been my favorite bird since I was a teenager. It's always seemed like an incredibly iconic bird, and it's apparent ability to adapt to both rural and urban areas without being a destructive pest feels sort of like a symbol of conservation, like a small triumph of nature in an urbanized world (I would have preferred to say that in a less cheesy way, however).Anyway, blue jays have apparently been expanding the northern portion of their range for quite some time now. They apparently weren't seen consistently in the Pacific Northwest until just the past couple of decades. I doubt they're going to "save the forests from the effects of climate change," but they might be able to help the forests migrate as climate change alters habitat suitability (provided the changes don't happen too quickly for them to keep up).

Hi, Faith. Meh. The "pecking order" at bird feeders has been reported a lot: it tends to vary a lot depending on where you live. Blue jays actually aren't all that high in the pecking order. At my home, they're regularly bullied by grackles and even cardinals. They're also more inclined to forage on the ground beneath the feeder than on the feeder itself; so if you scatter seeds beneath the feeder or have a feeder that tends to spill a lot, the blue jays might spend more time on the ground.Corvids are also interesting because of their intelligence. They're some of the most intelligent birds, so they have diverse habits, they're adaptable, and they can be quite nasty (though that reputation is largely exaggerated). In those ways, they kind of remind me of humans.The birds I really despise are starlings and house sparrows, because they were intentionally brought here from Europe by people. Back in the late 1800's and early 1900's, people thought introducing new species into an area was good for the wild lands because it "enriched" the environment. In my purist conservation mindset, blue jays, grackles and cardinals have a right to be here, and I love it when native birds can kick the non-native birds' -----.

There's only one "real" Robin: