Baby Scrub Jays

We have always loved having birds in our garden.  We have tried to attract them with feeders, but what they love most about our little place is our tiny pond with its constant dribble of water which overflows a bucket hanging from a pipe.

Scrub Jays are very plentiful here where we live.  But a certain pair of Scrub Jays seemed to like us more than others and hung around quite a bit.  They welcomed themselves on to our porches whenever they pleased, even if we were on the porch too.  They helped themselves to Denver's dog food when it was outside on the deck.  Just a few months ago, they started helping themselves to the liner that was in an unused hanging basket we had on the front porch.  The liner is made of some sort of fiber and they took beak loads of the stuff.  The kids and I added yarn and bread crumbs to it for them and were happy to see when they'd taken the little bits of red yarn.  They emptied the WHOLE basket of that fiber stuff and then we didn't see them for a while.  I hoped they had a nest somewhere near us.  Apparently a BIG nest.

Over the last few days 2 baby Scrub Jays have come to visit us!!!

"Sup"

I had a feeling Mr. and Mrs. Scrub had picked the tree right next to our play porch (where dog food bits are plentiful) and now I'm certain as these baby Scrubs hop down onto our porch from that tree all day long.

See all the grey fluff the babes have?  They're not small babies, but they are smaller and thinner than their parents.  They beg to be fed by their parents whenever Mr. or Mrs. Scrub come near.  The babies squat down, stick their wings out and squawk repeatedly, begging for food.

They are very trusting of us, just like their parents.

They come quite close to my little bird lover.

That is, until he can stand it no longer and MUST run to try and squeeze that fluffy baby.

"Bir, Mama!"

We have had so much fun watching these babes and I feel a sense of pride in knowing Mr. and Mrs. Scrub felt comfortable enough around us to choose our little plot to grow their family on.  I feel like our play porch and carport is the baby bird's nursery.  They hop around, visit us, investigate my husbands tool bench, our canoe, our dirt pile, the ladder to the club house....you get the picture.  They make the funniest little calls, which we are learning the meanings of.  And its so wonderful to see my kids excited about them, especially Kian who currently loves ANYTHING that flies.  When I was a little girl, my Nana and Mom would take my sisters and I to the lake to bird watch.  They'd teach us all the names of the birds.  Nana and Papa always had a garden that catered to the birds and boasted LOTS of bird activity.  Those are all fond memories for me so it brings me much joy to see Kian, a 4th generation bird lover, get excited about these babies.  He's the only one of my 3 who never sat on Nana's lap and watched the birds with her out her living room window.

Nana would be proud that he loves birds.  :)