There are thirty-six kinds of jays in North and Central America. Some that inhabit scrub oak trees are known as scrub jays. An interesting member of this group is the Florida scrub jay. Its vivid blue and gray feathers and long, slender tail are similar to the common blue jay, but it doesn’t have the crest on its head like the blue jay. It is an intelligent and inquisitive species.
These aggressive birds are about the size of a crow (a distant relative) and among the noisiest of birds. Lacking a real song, their calls are harsh.
Scrub oak trees are part of the Florida landscape where there are old sand dunes. The scrub jay is the only bird that makes its permanent home there, with the exception of hawks and a few other flesh-eaters. The scrub jay has almost completely taken over every spot where the scrub oaks grow, claiming individual territories and forcefully keeping other birds out. They can do this because the climate of that part of the country stays warm year-round, so they do not migrate. They are social birds and like to have other scrub jays nearby, so their colonies are noisy but happy.
A pair of adults raises just one brood each spring. The female does all the incubating of the eggs and feeding of the baby birds, but the male guards them carefully and provides much of their food. They eat a wide variety of acorns, seeds, peanuts, insects, tree frogs, turtles, snakes, lizards, and young mice. However, he seems to feel it beneath his dignity to feed the young birds so turns his offerings over to the mother and lets her feed them. Sadly, even in an emergency, the father bird doesn’t change, and if the mother should die, the young birds soon starve to death.
If the young ones have not found mates and made nests of their own by the time new brothers and sisters hatch out the following spring, they also help bring food to the mother and keep an eye on the nest when both parents are away. Some of them also help the father defend the home territory if strangers try to move in.
Since there are so many birds in the world, do you think God, the Creator of all of them, pays any attention to the many lowly scrub jays on the dunes of Florida? He certainly does, as the Bible often tells us. Look up these verses and see for yourself: Genesis 1:3030And to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life, I have given every green herb for meat: and it was so. (Genesis 1:30), Psalm 50:1111I know all the fowls of the mountains: and the wild beasts of the field are mine. (Psalm 50:11), Jeremiah 8:77Yea, the stork in the heaven knoweth her appointed times; and the turtle and the crane and the swallow observe the time of their coming; but my people know not the judgment of the Lord. (Jeremiah 8:7), Matthew 10:2929Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? and one of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father. (Matthew 10:29), and Luke 12:2424Consider the ravens: for they neither sow nor reap; which neither have storehouse nor barn; and God feedeth them: how much more are ye better than the fowls? (Luke 12:24). Then turn to Psalm 145:18-1918The Lord is nigh unto all them that call upon him, to all that call upon him in truth. 19He will fulfil the desire of them that fear him: he also will hear their cry, and will save them. (Psalm 145:18‑19) and see how He invites you to experience His love and preserving care, which are much greater to boys and girls than to birds and animals.
ML-08/25/2013