Magpie Jay General Information and Care

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Magpie Jay General Information and Care: Black Throated Magpie Jays (Calocitta colliei) and White Throated Magpie Jay (Calocitta formosa) are the only two species in their genus. Black Throated Magpie Jays are endemic to Northwestern Mexico. The range of White Throated Magpie Jays lies to the south, overlapping with Black Throats slightly in the Mexican states of Jalisco and Colima, and running into Costa Rica. Both of these birds are members of the family Corvidae. Magpie Jays are energetic, highly intelligent animals and need to be kept in a large planted aviary - not just a cage. These birds are highly social and are commonly found in the wild as cooperative nesters. They are omnivores and favor a great variety of fruits, insects, small rodents, and nuts. A captive diet that works well in my aviaries is a basic pellet low iron softbill diet such as Kaytee’s Exact Original Low Iron Maintenance Formula for Toucans, Mynas and other Softbills. A bowl of this is in the cage at all times and is supplemented with nuts, fruits and veggies like apples, papaya, grapes, oranges, peas and carrots and the occasional treat of small mice and insects like meal worms, crickets, megaworms, and waxworms are relished by the birds. Extra protein is essential if you want these birds to breed. Fresh water should always be provided. I use a shallow three to four inch deep, twelve inch wide crock the birds can drink from and bath in. The birds you are receiving from my aviaries are hand fed and closed banded. How recently they were weaned will affect how tame they are at first. All these birds will become quite comfortable with their caretaker with a little time and patience. Many of the breeding pairs I own will solicit and take treats and nesting material from my hand. Many Magpie Jays from my aviaries have been trained by animal trainers and used in films. A word of warning: the intelligence of these birds makes them excellent escape artists so make sure latches to aviaries are very secure. Please feel free to contact me with questions as I want the best for the birds I raised. If you are interested in having a mixed aviary, contact me for suggestions of compatible bird species as Magpie Jays can be aggressive and territorial. Paul Colo Rainforest Aviaries 619-518-5140 .

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Bird Damage to Pistachios
The extent of damage to pistachios by some birds that knock nuts to the ground, where they hull, shell, and eat them, can be measured. Losses to birds that pluck nuts from the tree and fly off to eat them else- where can only be estimated. counties to the south. District I1 (Central) is Merced, Madera, Fresno, and Kings Bird damage to nistachios counties. District I11 (Northern) is Monte- rey, San Benito, Inyo, and all counties to the north of Merced County. Terrell P. Salmon 0 A. Charles Crabb 0 RexE.Marsh Scope of the problem We received 105 responses (23 percent) from the 458 surveys mailed. Thirteen (12.7 percent) were excluded from analy- Crows are the primary culprits sis, because the orchards represented followed by ravens and jays were not in production, were outside Cali- fornia, or were managed by another per- son. The remaining 92 indicated they had pistachio losses due to one or more bird species. Bird damage was widespread through- out the state, as indicated by surveys re- turned from 18 counties. These 18 coun- ties represent 98 percent of the bearing pistachio acreage in California. The infor- mation we report here is based on the sur- vey returns and does not account for bird Various bird species are pests to a step in defining the problem and evaluat- damage and control that undoubtedly oc- number of California crops. Nut crops ing current bird control methods. cur but were not reported. Our estimates such as pistachios, almonds, and walnuts The major focus of the survey was to should therefore be considered conserva- are particularly hard hit, although infor- identify the bird species involved, the ex- tive.
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S Largest Islands: Scenarios for the Role of Corvid Seed Dispersal
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Individual Repeatability, Species Differences, and The
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