This is Bert Note.

Brooklyn, New York City's southeastern borough has prime spots to see birds.

Prospect Park, with more than 500 acres, many of them covered in trees,

fosters lots of native bird life.

One denizen of Brooklyn's trees is the

strikingly beautiful blue jay. Nearly a foot long, the jay is unmistakable, with vivid sky-blue

crest and back, find dark crosshatching on blue wings and tail, and a black necklace.

It's a familiar sight in Brooklyn's trees.

Blue Jays are consummate tree dwellers.

They nest, forage, and roost in the trees, even in this New York borough of over 2 million

people. They travel through Brooklyn neighborhoods from branch to branch. And if you live in the

eastern U.S., you can invite Blue Jays into even a small yard with a decent tree or two. This doesn't require a lot of square

footage on the ground. It's the volume of branches and leafy habitat overhead that matter to the Jays.

Blue Jays are especially fond of oak trees, which provide acorns and habitat for large insects,

two of their favorite foods.

For Bird Note, I'm Mary McCann.