We have been seeing gray jays flying around with sticks and other building materials in their mouths. gray jays begin making their nests in February and start laying eggs in the middle of March. It is still cold in the northern forests at that time of year, so the jays must eat lots of food to have enough energy for building and taking care of young. They rely on their caches of pellets for a lot of their energy . gray jays use a collection of twigs, bark, and sometimes pieces of wasp nests. The inside is lined with soft warm materials like deer, moose, snowshoe hare fur, and fine grasses. These soft materials are comfortable as well as insulative. Gray jays will feed on leftover carrion and will often pick up clumps of hair to take back to their nests.

These bold and inquisitive little birds always seem to find their way into camp. Even in remote areas where it is doubtful that they have had many other campers traveling through, they are eager to find bits of food that you leave. I would imagine that the voyageurs had gray jays of generations past visiting their campsites looking for bits of dried peas and pemmican dropped by a hungry voyageur as he scarfed down his meal.

The next time you are in the Northern Woods do not be surprised if a friendly gray jays comes by to see if you can share your food!