Gray Jays Attack Northern Hawk Owl (video!)

Okay, what does Canada’s new nation bird, the Gray Jay, have against Northern Hawk Owls? Apparently, a lot. To make it worse, given our present political climate, these dastardly jays, sometimes called the Canada Jay, flew down south 60 miles in the United States and carried out their attack in northern Minnesota near Upper Red Lake. Perhaps we need a very tall wall to keep the Gray Jays above our northern borders?!

Seriously, I had great fun today as I watched not 1, 2, or even 3, but 4 Northern Hawk Owls. Three of four birds had a pretty good day hunting peat bogs for tasty moles, but #3 had a rough time. In between attacks from nasty Common Redpolls, a pair of Gray Jays got in on the action. You may also wish to see yesterday’s post when I watched two Northern Hawk Owls for a combined total of over five hours … great sun, pics and video. While the light was not as good today, the experience of four hawk owls with all the attacks made for a memorable day. Once again, my total contact time with the Hawk Owls exceeded five hours.

Underneath today’s photographs are two videos … a real time video and a version of the Gray Jays attacking the Northern Hawk Owl, but slowed down by a factor of 4.

Canada Jay Attacks & Slide Past!