Still the King

Or queen as I can't tell whether the Steller's Jays are male or female. This one has been coming to our deck for a long time, I'm guessing almost ten years. He appeared one year with bands on both of his legs, one red and one green. So I named him Ro (for red) ger (for green). He was easy to spot due to those bands. There were other banded birds that year but within just a couple of years they were all gone. Not Roger. He stayed and basically took over as King of the Peanuts. He ruled for maybe six years and then a pack of younger jays took over from him. Well this year he is back. Not sure why but he rules now and chases other jays off that are not related to him. Those that are get to eat along side him. It is fun to watch.

Today I was feeling a bit bummed all day. Finally I decided to sit on the deck and do a little plein air painting while I watched the birds eat the pile of peanuts on the table. When they came, I picked up my nearby camera and took photos. When it was slow I painted. My mood improved significantly. I plan to do that again when we have such a great day.

Oh I forgot to mention about Roger... his bands faded to pink and yellow and then the red/pink one fell off. So now he only has one band and it is yellow. Maybe I should rename him to Y... erm, well, maybe not. He is still Roger.