Tail Piece
In his narrative essay entitled Tonto Basin, written in 1919, Zane Grey describes an encounter with a Steller's jay the year before in this remote region of central Arizona: "Then came the screech of blue jays. Soon they too discovered me. The male birds were superb, dignified, beautiful. The color was light blue all over with dark blue head and tufted crest. By and bye they ceased to scold me, and I was left to listen to the wind, and to the tiny patter of dropping seeds and needles from the spruces."
And in Grey's novel Under the Tonto Rim, published in 1926, he describes Lucy Watson's encounter with a Steller's jay upon her arrival at the Tonto Rim: "Here Lucy had opportunity to observe a small reddish-brown squirrel that was the sauciest little animal she had ever beheld. It occupied a branch above her and barked in no uncertain notes its displeasure and curiosity. Presently its chatter attracted a beautiful crested blue jay that flew close and uttered high-pitched notes, wild and fierce in their intensity. I hope the people here are not as antagonistic as this squirrel and bird,' observed Lucy."
Indeed, the Steller's jay is not antagonistic. That's just the way it speaks. It is a resident of coniferous forests, and is therefore often found at higher elevations. However, in the fall and winter, it often descends into the foothills and valleys, and may be seen in gardens at that time.
Previous columns by The Birdman of Bel Air:
New Bird-Watching Column: "The Birdman of Bel Air"
The California Towhee, Boldly Bland
At Home With Hooded Orioles
Scrub Jays Go Nuts for Peanuts
Northern Mockingbird is a Wary Neighbor
Christmas With the Pelicans
California-Quail Close Encounter
National Geographic BirdWatcher
Regularly updated news stories, features, and columns about birds and birding: Go >>
|
SOURCES AND RELATED WEB SITES
|
