Last year, I took a trip to Florida to meet Florida-Scrub Jays. This last February, when NYC was experiencing endless snow and cold, I took another trip to hang out with these little blue characters.
I went to a park where I had seen some before and, sure enough, they showed up to check us out.
All of the adults are banded and known to biologists. The jays live in family groups and this one appeared to be composed of five or six individuals.
Two of them came to the ground to go on a foraging expedition.
One came back up with some seed pods in its mouth.
After making sure no one was watching, this jay took the seeds to the ground and buried them for later.
Florida Scrub-Jays are endemic to Florida and are listed as Threatened under the Endangered Species Act, meaning they are likely to become an endangered species within the foreseeable future.
The 2025 State of the Birds report lists Florida Scrub-Jay as a Red Alert Tipping Point species, meaning that it has lost more than 50% of its population in the past 50 years, has a perilously low population, and has shown steep declining trends. This is due primarily to habitat loss (human development).
Learn more about these wonderful birds and how to help them at the Florida Wildlife Federation's website.
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