Gray Jays

While we were in Texas we had the pleasure to photograph green jays, south Texas is about the only place in the US that you can find them, but earlier this year I was photographing a different type of jay. While it is not nearly as colorful as its southern cousin the gray jay has several interesting characteristics of its own.

One of the smallest jays in the world, the gray jay makes its home in the boreal forests of Canada. Most gray jays stay in their northern home year round surviving the harsh winters by caching food during the warmer months. The gray jay will use its saliva to stick food, which includes insects, seeds, berries, small mammals, and carrion, in many different hiding places through out its territory. Some gray jays, especially young ones that may not have cached enough food, will head south and end up in northern Minnesota. I photographed these jays in the Sax Zim Bog in January.