Wednesday 12 April 2023

A to Z challenge 2023 – J is for . . .

 


A to Z challenge 2023 – J is for . . .

My theme for this challenge is Nature in all much of her wonderful diversity. My posts will reflect the fact that I am resident in the south of England.

All photographs in this post are the property of the writer.

J is for Jackdaw (Corvus Monedula)

The jackdaw is the smallest member of the corvid family, widespread across the British Isles, apart from the far north-west of Scotland. It is an adaptable bird, living in habitats as diverse as coastal reaches, woodland and towns and gardens, and nesting on cliffs or in holes in trees or chimneys.

                                               Best foot forward . . . 

The jackdaw’s diet consists of seeds, fruit, insects and carrion and occasionally eggs, hatchlings or nestlings.

                   Jackdaws will also inhabit church steeples, which habit was remarked by the 18th century poet, William Cowper:-

‘A great frequenter of the church,

Where bishop-like he finds a perch

And dormitory too.’

In parts of Wales the jackdaw was considered sacred because of this practice.

A legend among early Christians was that all corvids were originally white and took on black plumage after the crucifixion of Christ, with the exception of magpies, which were too busy stealing to mourn properly and only turned black in parts. I don’t know where jays came in the equation, though!

 A jackdaw on the roof may announce a birth or might equally be a portent of death (or possibly, macabrely, both) If a jackdaw stands on a cathedral weather vane it is foretelling rain, and if one is encountered on the way to a wedding it is considered good luck.

Jackdaw high in an oak tree

The common name jackdaw first came into use in the 16th century and probably derives from ‘Jack’ meaning rogue, or small (as in jack snipe and jack knife) or from the sound it makes (tchack), and daw, once used to describe a simpleton.

Jackdaws have an affinity with humans and can recognise individuals, a skill they share with other corvids.

 This smallest of the crows is credited with intelligence, mischievousness, shrewdness and thievery – all other attributes it has in common with (some) humans!

 

Jay (Garrulus glandarius)

                                      This Jay's crop is quite full!
The jay is the most colourful of the corvids but is shy and therefore not often seen in gardens. In autumn jays forage for acorns and bury them in caches to provide food in leaner periods. Those that are not found are left to grow into oak trees. The rapid spread of oak trees after the last Ice Age is thought to be a consequence of the jay’s habit of caching and leaving.
Listening . . . 
Before oak trees were planted commercially, jays were the main source of distribution and propagation, a single bird having the ability to spread more than a thousand acorns annually. They have been recorded carrying single acorns a distance of 20 km (almost 12½ miles)

In addition to acorns, jays eat other nuts, seeds and insects, and like their fellow corvids, they will sometimes take eggs and nestlings from nests.

Though their natural call is unmusical, a screech rather than a tune, jays are gifted mimics, reproducing the songs of small birds, and the alarm calls of blackbirds. They can also imitate everyday domestic sounds, like dripping taps, humming machines and humans whistling.

An interesting habit that jays share with more than 200 species of birds is that of ‘anting’. Birds may practice ‘active anting’ in which they pick up ants in their beaks and rub them on their bodies, or they may use ‘passive anting’, when they lie with wings outspread in an area rich in ants. In both cases, the ants react defensively, secreting formic acid, which acts as an insecticide to kill off parasitic mites in the feathers.


28 comments:

  1. How interesting about the 'anting'. I had no idea!
    Cheers, Gail.

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  2. I've only seen birds 'anting' a couple of times.

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  3. Thanks for this excellent post for Rosie ! I am so ignorant concerning birds, I love their beauty and their tweets, and my favorite bird which I have never seen and which was introduced to me by an Australian blogfriend is the Kookaburra ! His laughter is so contagious (not at 5 am)

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    1. Anything for Rosie, Ingrid. Kookaburras have a very infectious laugh.

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  4. Well we didn't know that Jays are corvids, thank you for continuing our education. No jays here but we did see lots when we holidayed in Kielder Forest. We wish more birds would come 'anting' at our allotment (where there are Fire Ants - so lots of formic acid...) xxx Mr T and F

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    1. We mostly see jays in the autumn, when they come looking for acorns, and it's always a thrill to see them in the garden - we feel quite privileged!

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  5. The sacred aspect of this bird is quite interesting.

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  6. Jays are quite pretty. Your last paragraph is particularly interesting about jays using ants to rid themselves of mites.

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    1. Anting is a very common habit - don't think I fancy it, though.

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  7. Very interesting! I never knew any of that, especially the ants! I'll have to play catch-up with the rest of the posts.

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  8. You taught me so much today. Jackdaws are mentioned by Jung today in my own post ... to the ghost of Mark Twain, who earned the name. :-) http://rolandyeomans.blogspot.com/2023/04/j-is-for-excuse-me-i-must-be-leaving.html

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  9. A birder friend of mine from the UK has recently been posting jackdaw photos on her FB page. Nice to read the history here of the interesting bird.

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  10. Another post full of fascinating facts! I had never heard of birds "anting" for instance. And I loved reading all the myths and folklore associated with jackdaws. Thank you for sharing, not to mention all your hard work in putting these A-Z posts together! xxx

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  11. . . .and thank you, Ann, for your kind comments x

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  12. Hi, lovely jackdaw photos, they are one of my favourite birds. I enjoyed reading back through your other a to z posts too.

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  13. Thank you, Martine. I like the rogue birds, too.

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  14. How intriguing about the ants! Your jay is very different to ours, who is strikingly blue with some white on top and grey underneath. And now I have to find out if we have jackdaws here! I have my computer fixed now so I am better able to read and comment :)

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  15. Apparently there are "rarely or accidentally" jackdaws in Nova Scotia, per Wikipedia. I didn't think I'd ever heard anyone talk about them!

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  16. I had completely forgotten Jackdaws even existed.

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    1. They're not really an everyday bird, like blackbirds and robins.

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  17. You'lll have to keep your eyes and ears peeled. (Can you peel ears??)

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