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Cardinals have become much more common at my bird feeder. They love the warm weather & the sunflower seeds. They also enjoy the bird bath in my yard. (Actually, I find that the bird bath is becoming more popular than the feeder.) The sparrows, house finches, robins, & cardinals visit it frequently, & angrily peck at it when I forget to fill it. The only birds that almost never come to it are the common grackles. I’ve only seen a Blue jay once this season, which is odd; previous years they’ve been quite common. I know they’re around though, I’ve heard their noisy calling in the trees in my neighborhood. Blue jays aren’t the kindest birds, they’ve been known for killing the eggs, adults, & young of other bird species, particularly western bluebirds, & taking over their nests.
Blue jays are coming back to MN to mate & nest. They are extremely noisy. They have several different calls, including a call that mimics a Red-shouldered hawk. This call is used to warn other birds of the presence of a hawk or other raptor. Blue jays nest in April or May, & have 4-6 speckled eggs that can be pink, green, blue, or olive. Both male & female look after the young, until they leave at 3 weeks. The female can have several broods in a season. Blue Jays are monogamous – they mate for life. Blue Jays are known for stealing & eating other birds young, but in a study, only 1 percent of the birds did this.