In this section are copies of original works of art. All of them are dedicated to helping us live according to unconditional love and compassion, which is the foundation of our peaceful means of bringing true and lasting peace to all of God's creatures, whether they are human beings or other animals.
(Artwork - 096)
Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata)
This is one of the most abundant and commonly seen birds in much of North
America, nesting from about central British Columbia east as far as
Newfoundland and south as far as the Gulf coast and Florida, although
generally absent in the far west and the U.S. southwestern quadrant.
It is highly migratory, and where I live, in southern Ontario, it is not
unusual to see flocks in the fall that may contain hundreds of birds.
I once estimated a flock to contain about five thousand. However, a
percentage also winter this far north, and during the winter, especially,
they are attracted to bird feeders. They love peanuts and can hold
them with one foot and adroitly peck open the shell to get to the nourishing
parts inside. They do the same with sunflower seeds.
They have a raucous, distinctive call often heard as background in movies
filmed out of doors in eastern North America. They occur anywhere
there are woodlots, well-treed parks and gardens, and especially where there
are mixed woods with beech, oaks, maples, and evergreens.
There are four recognized subspecies, and I have shown C. c. bromia, the one
that occurs throughout the northeastern U.S. and across southern Canada from
Manitoba to the east coast.
They are noisy most of the time, but very quiet around the nest, which is
how I have found nests. The nest, itself, is bulky and made of twigs
and other materials with a soft lining. They sometimes make a decoy
nest nearby, to fool predators. The young somewhat resemble the
adults, but are grayer, with thinner black markings on wings and tails.
Years ago I did a study of the fledglings, at about the age when they are
thinking of leaving the nest, and it is attached as well.
Blue Jays are conspicuous, will mob owls, crows, hawks and herons and other
real or imagined predators. They are omnivorous, eating both
seeds and vegetable matter and insects, small animals, the eggs of other
birds, carrion, and just about anything that is edible. They are in
the same family as the crows and ravens, a group of birds, collectively
called Corvids, known for its intelligence.
Both paintings are what I call “vignettes”, meaning floating images against
a white or monotone background. These were done on white paper
in watercolour, with some colour pencil added. Both were done
approximately life size.
Copyright © Barry Kent MacKay
Barry describes himself as a Canadian artist/writer/naturalist.
See his website:
Return to
Art by Barry Kent MacKay
Return to Art By Various Artists
Return to Art and Photo Journals and Galleries