Tootie's Backyard

Biv’s Home

Biv lives high in the water oak tree in Tootie’s backyard. He was born in a cup-shaped nest high up in the same tree. His parents built it using twigs, grass, weeds, bark strips, moss, and mud.

To build a strong nest, his parents took twigs from live trees, twisting them to break them off. They flew to the cemetery a few miles down the road to gather rootlets from freshly dug graves.

When he starts his family, he will help his mate build a nest using the same types of materials, though he will likely collect the rootlets from freshly dug ditches nearby.

Biv and his four siblings hatched from bluish eggs with brown spots two and a half weeks after their mom laid them. They lived in the nest for three weeks, eating seeds, berries, and bugs that their dad brought them before moving out on their own.

What types of nests have you seen in your yard?

Biv’s Hobbies

Biv loves to hang out with his large family and cawing loudly when he sees other animals he doesn’t like.

When they’re together, the group he and his family form is called a band, a cast, a party, or a scold.

Biv is also related to Kevin and the other crows, but he tends to stay away from them.

Tootie and Yoshi see him a lot. He’s loud and often out during the mid-morning when they go outside for playtime.

Because he’s smart and curious, Biv often watches Tootie and Yoshi from a safe perch just out of their reach. He used to scream at them, warning his family that there were dogs nearby. Since he’s learned that they’re fun puppies and not dangerous, he no longer screams out the warning.

During the late spring, summer, and early autumn, Biv spends his nights in the dense foliage of the pine trees just outside Tootie’s backyard. During the colder months, he sleeps with a roost, or a group of birds, for warmth.

What time of day do you notice the most birds in your yard?

Biv’s Diet

Like many birds, Biv is an omnivore. He loves to eat acorns and other seeds and bugs. He occasionally eats eggs.

Biv buries caches of acorns in the ground, which he sometimes forgets to retrieve. When he leaves the acorns and other seeds for long periods of time, he unintentionally plants a tree!

Despite occasionally forgetting where he plants his trees, Biv, like other blue jays, is very intelligent, using his keen memory to identify landmarks and find food.

Biv is a ground forager, meaning that he gathers most of his food from the ground. He will forage in trees and bushes throughout Tootie’s backyard as well.

Biv has both a strong beak and strong talons, which he uses to hold seeds in place as he cracks them open with his beak.

What other animals do you know of that use their feet to hold food?