Contemplating a bath…
Losing balance
First the head…
then the rest.
After this, the jay flew into a nearby tree to preen and dry off.
Bathing Jay
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Tag Archives: eurasian jay
Portrait of a Jay
I just received a fantastic new camera as a graduation present. Thanks mom! Now I can photograph the birds that previously I could only write about. To celebrate, I’ve been taking portraits of the denizens of our yard in the Tiergarten. First up is the jay, known here as an Eichelhäher, and known around our apartment as just “the Häher.” This is the same guy that buries his peanuts in my flowerpots. The first time that I saw his bright blue wings, I thought that he must be some kind of escaped exotic. But no, he is just a standard eurasian jay, and a beautiful specimen at that. He is clearly suspicious of my awesome zoom lens…
Peanuts
Last week, in a fit of spring fever, I decided to plant primroses and spring bulbs in my balcony garden. On pulling out the roots of last summer’s herbs I found a number of peanuts buried in my pots and window-boxes, and I left them there so they could be found again.
An Hour’s Walk
Today was the first full sunny day in as long as I can remember. We have had a few hours of sun here and there over the past few weeks, but it has always passed quickly and never seems to totally dispel the gloom. But today was different, and I took advantage of it by taking a meandering route on my errands. First I stopped by the gathering in the Spree, to check on the usual crowd. I didn’t see the little grebe this time, but everyone else was there. A man on the opposite bank was throwing bread in the water, so the whole mass of birds slowly moved into his vicinity, making quite a ruckus on the way. The coots are very funny when they decide to fly. They begin by running along the water, kicking it up behind them, and flapping their wings like mad. When they finally alight it seems a marvel that they can fly at all. Above is a photo of one of the coots about to take off. Continue reading