# Killer Blue Jays?!!



## bobber128 (Jun 6, 2010)

I have a couple blue jays that have started hanging out in my bee yard. I don't like blue jays to begin with, but now they are killing my bees by the dozens!:waiting: They either swoop out of the trees and snatch them up or they sit on top of the hive and get the foragers as they come and go. I live in the city, so shooting them is out of the question. Any other ideas?


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## chauktaw (Apr 7, 2011)

The perfect time for a bb gun or pellet gun. Little to no noise and if you do them one at a time on different days, your neighbors won't even notice.


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## Nicole (Jan 7, 2009)

Maybe one of those fake owl/hawk things could keep them away?


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## criscojohn (Sep 11, 2010)

So sorry about your troubles. Jays are an aggressive, protein (insect)-eating bird, so I don't know how you can stop them. That being said, mylar strips tied to fishing line (or any other rope, I guess) are supposed to scare off birds. The mylar flashing in the wind is what freaks out the birds. "They" recommend it around your garden, or up and down through the rows. Maybe you could rig something around your hives? I don't know if it would work on a "brave" bird like a blue jay, but it does seem to work on the more timid types. I hope this helps.
Good luck,
Chris


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## fish_stix (May 17, 2009)

Blue Jays love sunflower seeds. Put up a feeder and get them trained to eat something else besides your bees. They'll go for the easy pickings every time. BTW, they don't eat enough bees to make a difference in your hives unless you have thousands of jays in your yard. They also eat other less beneficial bugs like caterpillars and worms off your yard plants.


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## Omie (Nov 10, 2009)

chauktaw said:


> The perfect time for a bb gun or pellet gun. Little to no noise and if you do them one at a time on different days, your neighbors won't even notice.


Killing blue jays is I believe illegal, and usually the fines are big. Everyone in a city 'notices' when someone is popping off a gun _of any type_ outdoors. Police would be there in short order.


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## Oldbee (Sep 25, 2006)

_"I live in the city, so shooting them is out of the question. Any other ideas?" _

Move your hives out to the country, then you won't notice or "obsess" about those kinds of things,.. . My hives are out there [the country] and sometimes I see birds nearby and wonder if they are catching bees, but, "out of sight out of mind".

If you think [obsess] about all the predators like dragonflies, robber flies, jumping spiders, orb-web spiders, flycatchers, kingbirds, assassin bugs,..etc., you could drive yourself crazy. You don't want that to happen,..do you? 

From Wikipedia:>> *"Corvidae* is a cosmopolitan family of oscine passerine birds that contains the crows, ravens, rooks, jackdaws,*jays*, magpies, 
They are considered the most intelligent of the birds, and among the most intelligent of all animals[3][4] having demonstrated self-awareness in mirror tests (European Magpies) and tool making ability (Crows, Rooks[5])—skills until recently regarded as solely the province of humans and a few other higher mammals. Their total brain to body ratio is equal to that of great apes and cetaceans, and only slightly lower than in humans.[6]"

_"Maybe one of those fake owl/hawk things could keep them away?" _

Quote: "It has also been known to sound an alarm call when hawks or other dangers are near, and smaller birds often recognize this call and hide themselves away accordingly. It may also be aggressive towards humans who come close to its nest, and if an *owl* roosts near the nest during the daytime the Blue Jay mobs it until it takes a new roost."

_"That being said, mylar strips tied to fishing line (or any other rope, I guess) are supposed to scare off birds. The mylar flashing in the wind is what freaks out the birds." _

Quote: "Blue Jays, like other corvids, are highly curious and considered to be intelligent birds. Young individuals playfully snatch brightly coloured or reflective objects,  such as bottle caps or pieces of aluminium foil, and carry them around until they lose interest.[12]"

On Beesource there will always be two camps of thought about what to do regarding the natural predators of our bees. I started out watching birds many years ago. I feed the birds during winter and this year a Coopers hawk would swoop by about once every 10 days - 2 weeks. One time it caught a Junco. It made me think if my feeding the birds is a wise thing to do.

_"I don't like blue jays to begin with, but now they are killing my bees by the dozens!"_

I don't like Cowbirds because they lay their eggs in other birds nests; some of which are endangered like the Kirtlands warbler in MI.,and WI. Maybe half of that dozen are drones?


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## NasalSponge (Jul 22, 2008)

> Everyone in a city 'notices' when someone is popping off a gun of any type outdoors. Police would be there in short order.


Oh Omie.....you sure don't live in the south!! The small town I used to live in had Pecan orchards and would fire off propane cannons to keep the critters out....by policy the police did not investigate gun shots. However it is illegal to shoot most song birds.:no:


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## TIMER (Apr 17, 2011)

It is legal here in Mi to kill predators that are harassing your livestock.
I would check with your county animal control first.
Gamo Whisper nearly silent and very accurate.
I'd have Blue Jay stew in no time.
Just like grandma used to make.


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## unhdude (Apr 21, 2011)

What about a slingshot? Fire an acorn or two at it... it wouldn't be lethal or make any noise, but might scare it off. It might not be *strictly* legal but if no one was looking at the time it might go unnoticed. Too bad the bees don't smarten up and sting the thing.

As someone who used to live downtown in a small city and had a ground hog that liked to eat my garden, I sympathize!


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## NorthernIllinoisPlumber (Aug 17, 2010)

I like the owl idea...


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## Barry (Dec 28, 1999)

bobber128 said:


> I don't like blue jays to begin with, but now they are killing my bees by the dozens!


Dozens? Like Oldbee said, perhaps you're spending too much time watching over the bees. 10 dozen bees is 240. Queen can lay 1500 eggs per day. At that rate, the Jays are getting 15%. I doubt very much they are eating that many bees in one day.


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## bobber128 (Jun 6, 2010)

Seems like the consensus is to leave well enough alone. My only concern is that they seem to be focusing solely on the weakest hive. I'm really NOT interested in killing them. Maybe I'll try feeding them sunflower seeds..... Thanks everyone.


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## planelivin (May 1, 2011)

On day 6 of my first hives I found a dead blue jay next to hive #1. there was a mark on the side of my hive where he had hit. I guess he broke his neck when he collided with the side of the hive.


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## Honeycomb (Jan 15, 2010)

I noticed a blue jay hanging around my hives. He stood in front of the entrance for a while and I thought he was going to start eating them alive. But then he started going around and gobbling up the dead ones on the ground. He also perches on the roof in line of the flight path and just trips out on all the flying bees.


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## Sid from Texas (Jan 24, 2011)

A harmless way would be bird netting. I needed it for the tomato garden. Had over 100 plants last year, birds used to hang out, eating their fill. Got the netting at Tractor Supply. I will leave it to your imagination about how to suspend it. Luckily I had fencing, with posts.


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## danno (Dec 17, 2007)

TIMER said:


> It is legal here in Mi to kill predators that are harassing your livestock.
> I would check with your county animal control first.
> Gamo Whisper nearly silent and very accurate.
> I'd have Blue Jay stew in no time.
> Just like grandma used to make.


It is not legal to kill song birds in michigan or any where else. They are federally protected. The only birds that can be LEGALLY controlled are house sparrows, pigeons and starling. If a few bee's get made lunch of at the hive bothers anyone than try not to think about the hundreds and even 1000s that are eaten or just die in the the field every day. You wont be able to sleep at night


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## Erichtexan (Apr 21, 2009)

NasalSponge said:


> Oh Omie.....you sure don't live in the south!! The small town I used to live in had Pecan orchards and would fire off propane cannons to keep the critters out....by policy the police did not investigate gun shots. However it is illegal to shoot most song birds.:no:


We use the propane cannons to keep the deer away from the peanuts - but yeah, I guess they would work with blug jays - my big problem here is all the darn purple martins.


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## bobber128 (Jun 6, 2010)

Great!!!! Now I have to worry about the purple martins, too?!?!?! Kidding... I've decided you are right, what's a couple dozen dead when we are talking about thousands of bees? Just gonna leave well enough alone.


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