Flora and Fauna.

[agoodwinsmith]

There was a blue jay in the yard yesterday:
https://www.canadiangeographic.ca/article/animal-facts-blue-jay

The range map at the above link seems flawed to me because I have seen blue jays in the southern interior of BC for 40 or so years. They don't hang out in crowds, so you are only going to see one or two at a time, and they are not urban for sure, but if you have tasty bugs on your rural property, you'll see them.

In the grey light of an overcast interior sky, the blue is almost electric.

Edited:

Okay - probably Steller's Jay:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steller%27s_jay

Still really vividly blue.

Comments

[jessie_c]

I wouldn't be surprised if you get Whisky Jacks as well.

[agoodwinsmith]

The only place I have *seen* whiskyjacks is up at Cathedral Lakes - lived up to their importuning reputation completely. They might be at lower levels, but I haven't seen them.

[jessie_c]

The ones at Cathedral Lakes have all the tourists very well trained. I think it takes a great deal of personal work for each bird to train a human to feed them, and perhaps there are simply too many humans for them to be reliably trained so the birds stay away instead :(

[cat63]

Such a pretty bird!

Coincidentally we were visited by a jay recently, but purs are pink :)

http://ww2.rspb.org.uk/birds-and-wildlife/bird-and-wildlife-guides/bird-a-z/j/jay/

[agoodwinsmith]

Pink - very cool. Ours have a crest on their heads, which can be used a little bit like a cockatoo's - but not so flamboyantly. Does the pink have a head crest?

[cat63]

I didn't think they did, but this web page says I'm wrong :)

http://www.garden-birds.co.uk/birds/jay.htm

[agoodwinsmith]

Sorry - found another link to share with you:
http://identify.whatbird.com/obj/81/_/Stellers_Jay.aspx

The ones I am seeing are the darkest version, without any greyer areas in the blue. This is the first time I have seen a pair - and I don't think they are a nesting pair (wrong time of year anyway, but still) because one is trying to hide food in our front flowerbed and the other is trying to watch where and being chivied away by the first. Really vivid blue. Quite a pronounced crest (may be from the "bugger off" stance).