How to Get Rid of Blue Jays? (Without Hurting Them)
Blue Jays are my favorite birds but sometimes they can be so annoying. Therefore, sometimes you may be forced to think about how to get rid of blue jays.
The best way to get rid of blue jays is by scaring them away using a fake owl or something. Jays are really smart and they won’t be scared of the same thing twice, so you’ll have to come up with a different idea to scare them off every time!
There are many ways to scare blue jays away but not all of them will work for you. However, I can’t let my readers be disappointed. Therefore, in this article, I have mentioned some of the best ways to scare away blue jays without hurting them.
Here are just some of the best ideas that I’ve put together for you.
How to Scare Away Blue Jays Without Hurting Them
1. Use a Fake Owl to Scare Away Jays
If you’ve ever seen the movie Elf, then you probably remember Buddy’s (Will Ferrell) best friend who was an elf and he used to scare off the bullies with his little fake owl.
I’m sure that nobody had ever thought about using an owl to get rid of the jays! But it works like a charm. Jays are really smart and they won’t get fooled twice but if you don’t mind buying an owl, then this is probably your best bet to go with.
You can make a scarecrow for jays using a fake owl, clothespins, and some clothesline rope. You can use this method to not only get rid of blue jays but also crows, pigeons, and many other types of birds.
2. Play Back Some Owl or Screech Owl Sound
The only thing standing between you and getting rid of jays is a fake owl. Well, at least it’s the only thing that I know of! There are many different types of owls that you can get to scare away jays.
However, if you want an easier way out then you should consider playing some screech or owl sound on your recorder and play it back outside in your garden. Jays hate owl sounds and they will stay away from your garden as quickly as possible.
3. Get a Kitty!
If you want to get rid of jays, then the best thing that you can do is adopting a friendly kitty. Cats are predators and they will go after anything that they consider small enough.
However, if you don’t have a cat or you really dislike cats then I suggest not getting one just for this purpose. Cats are great but they also aren’t the easiest pets to take care of.
4. Install a Motion Sensor on Your Fence
If you have a fence in your garden, then you should consider installing motion sensors. Blue jays are predators and they will not get close to where their predators are waiting for them!
Motion sensors are extremely cheap and you can install one on your fence to keep the jays away.
5. Install Wind Chimes
You can also buy some wind chimes and install them in your garden to keep the jays away. If you live in an urban area with lots of street noise, then this idea is perfect for you!
The constant moving of the wind chimes will scare away most birds (if not all) including blue jays. Just keep in mind that wind chimes need a constant source of wind to work properly.
6. Install a Laser Spotlight
Laser spotlights are a great way to scare away birds and other annoying animals from your garden including blue jays. They look great in the dark when they’re turned on and I’m sure you will love them.
What you need to do is just install the laser spotlight and turn it on when you see jays in your garden. The red light will scare them away for sure!
7. Clear Away Stray Seeds and Other Food Sources
If you want to get rid of blue jays and other types of birds, then you should first consider taking care of your garden. Just make sure that there are no food sources that can attract them! Otherwise, you’ll be facing a never-ending battle with the birds.
8. Use an Alternative Feeder
Directly using your original bird feeder can be extremely risky, especially if you use some type of seed that the jays love. I’ve tried this myself and let me tell you something: it didn’t work out too well. The birds were literally eating everything in my garden!
You should consider getting an alternative feeder that is different from the one that you usually use. They are cheap and they can easily be found online or at your local shop!
9. Use a Scare Tape
Scare tape is really popular among gardeners who want to keep birds away from their gardens without using any harmful chemicals. It’s easy to install, cheap, and it works extremely well for this purpose!
Just hang the tape around your garden and you will notice a significant decrease in bird activity. The birds are scared of the red, black, and UV rays which are included in this type of tape. Just make sure to choose one that is motion-activated because they work just as good if not better!
10. Place Some Pans Around Your Garden
If you have lots of pans in your house, then you should consider placing them in the bottom of your garden. The sound of the metal hitting each other is extremely loud and annoying for any bird so it will scare them away without harming them at all!
11. Change the Seeds You Use
Blue jays are predators and they will go after seeds that other smaller birds like to eat. If you want to keep them away from your garden, then I suggest changing the seeds you’re using for bird feeders. Make sure not to plant any type of corn because blue jays love it!
12. Weight the Perch of Your Feeder
Another simple way to keep blue jays from your garden is by adding some weight on the perch.
Blue jays are very intelligent and self-protective and they won’t want to sit on a perch that can potentially break under their weight.
This method works really well, but I suggest using a metal chain because it’s better for this purpose.
13. Place a Mirror Out for Them
I’m sure you’ve seen some doves resting on the ground and then flying up into the air when they see their own reflection. They’re terrified of it because they think that there’s another bird coming for an attack!
You can use this trick with blue jays as well. Simply place a mirror out in your garden where they can see it and they will stay away from your garden. Just make sure that the mirror is facing towards them!
14. Try a Scented Deterrent
There are lots of scented deterrents on the market that work extremely well for this purpose. They’re usually organic, cheap, and easy to use around your garden without any risk!
Reasons Due to Which People Want to Scare Away Blue Jays
Now that you’ve learned some of the best and easiest ways to get rid of blue jays in your yard. You might be interested to learn about some of the main reasons due to which people want to scare them away and get rid of them.
As I’ve already mentioned they are very beautiful birds and I personally love them a lot because of their beautiful blue color. However, sometimes they can be quite annoying.
Here are some of the main reasons due to which you might want to scare them away from your yards and gardens.
1. They are Noisy
Blue jays can be extremely noisy and they can get very annoying if you’re trying to concentrate on your work or study.
It can be very distracting when you are trying to concentrate on something like programming, mathematics, physics, or even just general study.
I remember back in the days when I had final semester exams I used to get distracted a lot by the blue jays’ loud “jayyyyy” sound :p
2. They Can Cause Damage to Your Lawns and Trees
One of the biggest reasons for which people want to get rid of these birds is because they like plants and other birds’ food. Therefore, some people usually want to scare them away to protect their plants and let the other birds feed on their porch safely.
3. They Can Destroy Your Vegetables
Another reason due to which people want to get rid of blue jays is because they love eating vegetables and fruit more than any other bird. You can easily keep them away from your garden if you use the methods we’ve talked about above!
4. They are Bully Birds
Blue jays are considered bully birds. Why? because they usually don’t get along with other birds. Mostly if there are blue jays and cardinals in your yard. You will see them scaring away cardinals. However, they can be good friends sometimes but that depends on the situation.
Therefore, some people may want to get rid of blue jays just to make sure their porch or yard is safe for other birds. Well, this is a bitter truth but you need to scare away one species of bird to attract the other sometimes.
Speaking of the blue jays scaring away cardinals, have you checked my guide on do they really scare away cardinals and why do they do that? If not then I highly recommend reading that because I have mentioned some interesting facts for you there.
Regular Tips on Blue Jays’ Behavior
Now that you’ve learned these reasons due to which some people want to get rid of blue jays. Let’s talk about the regular tips on their behavior so you can easily recognize them and handle them better in your yard.
- They usually land on the other birds’ nests and eat their eggs
- They usually live in pairs or small groups that roam around your yard searching for food
- They love to eat fruit such as cherries, blueberries, strawberries, etc.
- Their favorite food is pine nuts which can be found in pine cones
- They also eat beetles, grubs, insects, earthworms.
- They are very noisy birds that can be extremely annoying for some people because of their squawking sound “jayyy!!! jayyy!!!”
- Blue jays are intelligent creatures which is why they usually remember where all the food is in your yard. They will come back to your place every time to eat the food they like.
- Blue jays can be extremely dangerous when they are protecting their chicks because they usually attack dogs, cats, and even humans in order to protect them.
- Sometimes blue jays can be aggressive towards other birds if they try to steal their food.
- Blue jays can be very entertaining when they jump around and show off in front of you
- They love sitting on trees and singing for hours
- The blue jay’s life span is approximate 4 years but they usually don’t survive the winter seasons because of the lack of food
- They are also migratory birds that travel to warmer climates every winter season
- The female blue jays are responsible for building the nest, laying eggs, incubating them, and raising their young once they hatch.
- Blue Jays usually lay 4 to 5 eggs and hatch them in about 2 weeks’ time.
Last Minute Thoughts
How to get rid of blue jays? well there are multiple ways to scare them away without hurting them. The best and the easiest way is to hang fake owls around. Owls are predators and it will keep jays off your lawn or yard.
Besides that, you can also change the feed in your bird feeder. You should remember that blue jays love peanuts.
If you are using peanuts in your bird feeder then they will show up and scare all the other birds. You can replace them with safflower seeds or even shelled corn which will keep these jays away for sure.
Some people use blaring music to scare blue jays off their yard and it does work most of the time. However, they might decide to come back anyway so I recommend using more than one method to make sure they are gone for good.
Well, I hope you enjoyed reading this article. Please don’t forget to share it with your friends and family and pin it on Pinterest too.
Happy bird-watching friends.
