Feathered Friends - Show Me A Photo Contest Round 137 ~ Blue Jays, more than meets the eye.

When I saw the #SMaP for this week being corvids I was happy to see that the Blue Jay was part of this family. Before getting involved with one of my favorite communities #Feathered #Friends, I knew very little about birds. I knew they liked to fly, came in many colors, and that ducks liked to eat bread.

As a kid, my mom would take us to The Duck Pond which was the actual name for this small body of fresh water. Whenever we had a few slices of stale bread left in the bread draw we'd head to the pond which was just a few minutes away by car. Once you were at the water's edge and threw that first bit of bread in the water, the ducks swam to your location in force, quacking all of the way.

I'm not saying in any way that I'm now an expert, but I know a heck of a lot more about birds now, and I'm still learning. For example, when I saw the word corvids I must admit that I was lost, but since the Blue Jay was in this group I was good to go.

Wanting to know something about this family of birds I typed corvids into the search bar and here was the first thing I read. CORVIDS/CORVIDAE In colloquial English, they are known as the crow family or corvids. When I read this I realized just how much I still didn't know. I must admit that I felt a little foolish.

After that long-winded overture, let's take a look at a few Blue Jays that stop at our place on a regular basis for a good meal.

The pair in the feeder must be a couple, while the one on the top of the feeder seems to be wondering where its mate is.

Once these beautiful birds find a mate,

they stay hitched for life, TILL DEATH DO US PART.

Is this Blue Jay seeing a reflection of itself?

The next two pictures I was saving for a possible future #SMaP,
SHOW ME A BIRD'S BOTTOM,

If I had a bottom as picturesque as this guy I'd also be showing it off, NOT.

These next two pics were cool to capture.
I thought that once the jay grabbed a Sunflower seed,
it just swallowed the whole thing.
While zooming in on this guy I realized that it had a death grip on the black seed and was

breaking it open to get at the seed inside of the shell.
I stated earlier that I still have a lot to learn about our flying friends.

Now that's one serious look. This Jay has its game face on,
it looks like it's sending a message to others to keep their distance.

With blue being my favorite color, for me, this picture is eye candy.

There are so many things that we can learn from other living creatures
and mimicking some of their behavior would play well for us humans.
Have a read.

The blue jay is a bird with deep cultural and spiritual significance, associated with various meanings, including intelligence, communication, playfulness, fearlessness, awareness, and protection.
The blue jay’s symbolic meaning varies across different cultures. For example, Native Americans see the bird as a powerful communicator, while the Chinese associate it with good luck and happiness.
Blue jays can offer guidance and wisdom to people in their daily lives. By understanding the bird’s symbolism and incorporating it into their practices, individuals can learn to communicate effectively, embrace joy and playfulness, stand up for themselves and others, make better decisions, and cultivate greater awareness and empathy.

https://www.richardalois.com/symbolism/blue-jay-meaning

Another fun week was spent learning and observing these marvelous creations.