Gray Jay

When I was out in the mountains yesterday with friends at the Golden Eagle Migration area near Mt. Lorette, two or three of these curious Gray Jays flew down to check us out. A lot of low cloud and low light, so my photos aren't as good as I wish they had been, but it was so nice to actually see a bird reasonably close, unlike the Golden Eagles, which were little more than very distant specks. The Gray Jay (Perisoreus canadensis) is also called "Camp Robber", "Canada Jay" and "Whiskeyjack".

"The Gray Jay, Perisoreus canadensis, is a member of the crow and jay family (Corvidae) found in the boreal forests across North America north to the tree-line and in subalpine forests of the Rocky Mountains south to New Mexico and Arizona.... To the delight of modern campers, many individual Gray Jays quickly learn that we can be an excellent source of food, even coming to the hand for bread, raisins, or cheese." From Wikipedia.