I started feeding blue jays peanuts in the shell many years ago, when I lived in Detroit Lakes. It was a Saturday morning ritual in the winter. Start a pot of coffee, fill the feeders, and throw a couple of handfuls of whole peanuts out on the platform feeder. I had two large picture windows in front of the kitchen table from which to watch. It was a very relaxing way to start my weekend. I LOVE watching behaviors in birds. The blue jays would fly into the yard the moment they heard my storm door shut. There were 4-6 birds, I think. Their "mode" was to fly to the feeder, pick up a peanut, drop it, pick up another one, drop it - until they found the heaviest one - then fly to a nearby branch, where they would hold the peanut between their feet, poke a hole in one end of the shell, pull out the kernel, do the same to the other side, and then let the shell fall to the ground. This process was repeated until they got several kernels in their mouth/throat, and then they would fly off to the woods to stash them. They would make repeated trips until all the peanuts were gone and there was a pile of shells left in my yard. All the birds used this same process. I understand that the heaviest peanuts are chosen first because they have more nutrition per trip. The wimpiest peanuts were always the last to be chosen. I've been feeding the blue jays at Avon the same way this winter, but have noticed that the jays here fly in, grab a peanut and then immediately fly off to the woods with the whole thing. They don't stop to pull out the kernels the way the Detroit Lakes birds did. I know that there are at least 7 different birds who come in for the treats - maybe more. So my question for SOMEONE who knows more about this than me, is...why is the feeding pattern different? Is it a learned behavior within the local population? Or could it be that there are more birds here - more competition/grappling for the goodies, so they zip in to grab what they can, and then fly off to stash it safely away? I'd love to know the answer! Betsy Beneke Avon, Stearns County
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