What Do Scrub Jays Eat?

Scrub jays are colorful crows that belong to the genus spot Inhabits southern North America to Mexico. There are 7 species; probably the most famous is the California scrub jay.

Most scrub jays are predominantly blue and, to the surprise of many, are related to larger corvids such as crows. Here, we explore the diet of scrub jays and their foraging behaviour.

Jungle jays are opportunistic omnivores, feeding on a variety of insects, fruits, seeds, and even small mammals and lizards. When food is plentiful, they harvest as much as they can and store the excess in storage, which they visit when food becomes scarce.

Like other corvids, scrub jays are highly intelligent and have an extremely accurate spatial memory that helps them remember their caches. They also work together in small groups to forage for food and work together to survive.

Of course, there’s still a lot to learn about this fascinating crow – read on to find out more!

Scrub Jays are opportunistic feeders that feed on large quantities of items

Scrubs Jay Diet

What is a jungle jay’s favorite food?

Scrub jays are opportunistic omnivores, and their diet varies with available food. They will eat a variety of insects, small reptiles, rodents, seeds, nuts and berries.

Scrub jays are smart and often track down the nests of other birds so they can find and eat their chicks – cruel but effective!

Scrub jays are also often seen feeding on lizards when other food sources are scarce. In urban environments, they feed on human scraps; they are flexible and don’t care too much about what they eat, as long as they are well fed.

What seeds do scrub jays eat?

Scrub jays have been known to eat a variety of seeds and nuts, including acorns, sunflower seeds, walnuts, corn, pine nuts, cereals, grains, and more.

What insects do scrub jays eat?

Jungle jays eat many different types of insects, arthropods, and invertebrates, including beetles, grasshoppers, worms, spiders, flies, millipedes, centipedes, caterpillars, and bees. Moth caterpillars are an important food in some areas.

What fruit do scrub jays eat?

Bushjays are known to eat fruit from a variety of shrubs and trees, such as blueberries, elderberries, strawberries, blackberries, raspberries, and cherries.

Close up of a bush jay foraging on the ground

foraging behavior

How often do scrub jays eat?

Scrub jays eat actively throughout the day. Depending on the season and availability, they may eat more or less. For example, they typically forage more vigorously to gain valuable body weight before winter sets in.

Do scrub jays go to feeders?

Scrub jays love peanuts and sunflower seeds and will definitely visit a feeder if they are available. However, many people do not want to attract jays to their garden because they can be very aggressive and can be a threat to other smaller birds.

Best Feeder for Scrub jays

Some suggested feeders for Scrub jays include ground feeders, hopper feeders, and platform feeders. They’re smart and not fussy, so they’ll find a way to get food from whatever you offer them.

What time of day do scrub jays eat?

Scrub jays actively forage throughout the day, but may also feed in the evening towards dusk.

Closeup of a western bush jay eating suet from a bird feeder

How do scrub jays find food?

Scrub jays are noisy foragers that hunt alone, in pairs, or in small flocks.

Like many other corvids, some populations of scrub jays participate in cooperative breeding—meaning that birds from the same kin group help each other build nests, raise chicks, and more.

One of the Scrub jay’s most fascinating behaviors is its ability to store food. When there is a surplus of food, they build small storage rooms within their territories.

Studies have shown that these very intelligent birds can memorize about 200 treasure spots, which they will weigh and choose the best spot that other animals are unlikely to find.

It’s an example of metacognition — a rare trait of animal intelligence that’s largely reserved for humans, great apes, dolphins, and a few other species.

Scrub jays are cunning and will often steal food from other animals, including from woodpecker hides.

California scrub Jay eats a big nut

What do bush jays eat in winter?

During fall and winter, bush jays modify their diets to consume more nuts and seeds.

Sometimes in winter, when food is scarce, they plan by caching excess food. Caching is more common in fall and early winter.

What do bush jays eat in summer?

Scrub jays eat a variety of foods in summer, but they tend to choose insects, arthropods, invertebrates, and small vertebrates when possible.

Their summer diet consists mostly of insects, but they also eat berries, nuts, and other small fruits. They are also known to eat the eggs and young of other birds during the breeding season.

Western Scrub Jay feeds on insects

Feeding and Attracting Scrub Jays

Can bushjays be fed?

You can feed scrub jays, but many choose not to. In fact, these rowdy birds are sometimes considered nuisance or undesirable due to the threat they pose to other birds.

In fact, jungle jays pose little threat to other birds and may even support them by eating lizards and other small terrestrial predators. They prey on other birds only when the staple food is insufficient.

So feeding scrub jays may calm their more aggressive tendencies!

What can I feed bush jays?

Scrub jays are opportunistic feeders and will eat a variety of foods. They feed on insects, small reptiles, nuts, and berries in the wild, so most bird seed mixes do well. Peanuts and sunflower seeds are often popular.

Bird feeders should be placed in an open area away from trees and bushes so jays can easily see and access food.

What not to feed scrub jays?

Avoid feeding jay bread and non-nutritious foods. In general, anything that is bad for humans is also bad for birds and other animals. Instead, stick to seeds, nuts, and some occasional kitchen scraps.

What do Scrub jays drink?

Like other birds, scrub jays prefer clean, fresh water.

Bush jays are not too picky and will eat most bird seed mixtures

How do you attract scrub jays?

Scrub jays are attracted to yards with trees and shrubs. They also love a yard with bird feeders and bird baths.

You can attract them to your yard by offering bird feeders filled with sunflower seeds, peanuts, or suet. You can also place a tray of water for them to drink and bathe. Water, food, and bird baths will attract a wide variety of birds.

Are there scrub jays?

The scrub jay is an interesting and rewarding bird. They are known to eat many different insects, including some that bite and injure humans or are a nuisance to crops.

Crows get a bad rap due to their sometimes hostile behavior, but it’s part of their nature and the food chain depends on it.

They also eat small rodents, lizards and snakes, which may benefit other wildlife. Additionally, they store food, which helps disperse seeds and helps new plants grow. Jays support oak and other tree populations.

Scrub Jay perched on a wooden fence

common problem

Do scrub jays eat mice?

Although bushjays usually eat acorns, insects and other small animals. They are famous for eating rats. These opportunistic feeders are cunning and skilled — they won’t hesitate to catch a vulnerable rat if they can.

Do scrub jays eat hummingbirds?

Scrub jays are not as notorious for eating hummingbirds as bluejays are, but they have been known to target hummingbirds at times.

Do scrub jays eat other birds?

Almost all corvids will eat other birds if given the chance. However, this is very rare and birds are certainly not their staple food. The study found that scrub jays tended to prey on chicks only when they had no food to eat.