Jays

Just what to do on a dark dank day? With a stiff easterly blowing, clearly the onset of winter, I wasn't keen to be out birding. However, just lately there has been an influx of Jays on the South Coast and our garden has not been an exception, although most of our visitors have been over, rather than in, as it were. So with time on my hands I decided to see if I could attract a Jay into the garden, getting sufficiently close enough for a photo or two. Mid morning I set up a small feeding table, just hammering it into the lawn close by the pond, in plain view of anything flying over and set up the camera on the patio. Sure enough by lunch time we had our first visitor, attracted by the peanuts and by four o'clock the population had risen to four.

The conditions for photography were poor and most of the following were taken at ISO1000 and barely enough shutter speed. Still, reasonable photos of what is a very handsome bird.

One nut in the crop.......



.......ten nuts in the crop



Of course the peanuts attracted other passers-by.