Birds and peanuts... two for your viewing pleasure!

I bought some unshelled, raw peanuts at the Wild Bird Center the other day and waited until I had some time to spend in front of my kitchen window before scattering a few on the deck table to see whether or not the Blue Jays would stop by to dine. They really are not interested in the seed provided in my bird feeders.

The Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata) in the above image came in for a very quick grab, several times... then OFF he would fly to hide in the holly tree before coming back for another peanut. It was very hard to capture the action so I'll try again another day... this is the best image from my first experiment using peanuts to entice the jays!

Imagine my surprise to discover that not only did the Blue Jays enjoy the peanuts... but Mrs. Cardinal stopped by too to help herself (image below). How she managed to eat the peanut is a mystery because once she got a good hold on it... off she went!

Female Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis) with peanut.