For the past three days, at least 27 Blue Jays have been here continuously
harvesting acorns from a huge Pin Oak (Quercus palustris) tree in our
backyard. This tree lies adjacent to [and is a part of] a larger woodlot
which was planted here in south central Huron County over thirty years ago.

The foliage is thick and covers a crop of thousands of acorns on stems which
shake and quiver as the birds fly in/out and pluck the fruits for immediate
consumption or to be cached in the lawn for winter consumption. Many of the
twitched nuts fall to the leaf litter below and are gathered by chipmunks
and a variety of squirrels.

Blue Jays tend to move in a more solitary manner [or in pairs] during most
of the year. But when the oak trees yield up their annual bounty, the jays
are there en masse to gather the harvest and enjoy the feast !

Dean E. Sheldon, jr

Perfect Seedbed Company

Greenwich


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