Attracting Blue Jays

by Michelle D.
(Florida)

I don't have a birding story yet, but I'm working on it! I'm just starting to put out seed & water again to attract the birds after a 5+ year hiatus, and I want especially to attract Blue Jays. I know they're common, not flashy, loud & can sometimes be bullies to the other birds but I like them - a lot. They have personality & are really comical to me. Several years ago I had a dozen or so that would come by regularly for peanuts. Unfortunately when you attract birds sometimes you get feral cats. One of those cats got one of the Jays & I rescued the mostly dead bird from the bushes. It didn't live long enough to tell the other Jays that I wasn't the responsible party. The other Jays started squawking so loudly it rivaled any rock concert I've ever been to. I was framed for the crime, and now apparently this story has been passed down through the generations of the Blue Jay community in my neighborhood. It's been about three weeks now since I've started back putting out food & peanuts & they absolutely do not want to come in my yard. Any suggestions on earning back their trust???

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Oct 21, 2013
 Blue Jays LOVE their peanuts!
by: Anonymous

I buy lots of raw, unsalted peanuts in the shell & throw them on the ground in several locations at least twice a day. Then I call Peanuts! The Blue Jays are the first to get them; they fly down,get the biggest one take it up to the tree & come right back down for more. Sometimes they get them all before the squirrels arrive. They also like corn & sunflower seeds that I put down for the squirrels. They have a special call to let everyone know the food is here...then they swoop down & the squirrels, cardinals, mourning doves, ravens & woodpeckers follow behind. Do this long enough & I'm sure they'll return.
Mar 06, 2011
 Whole Peanuts in the Shell
by: Amy M.

Blue Jays LOVE whole peanuts in the shell! But you need to throw them on the ground when you know they are around, or the squirrels will eat them all! You could put them on a platform feeder. I've seen my Jays take peanuts from there. The blue jays can't grasp most peanut feeders.

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