This is Bird Note.

Jays are smart.

Many Jays, including the Blue J, store food for sustenance in harsher seasons.

Over a few months, an individual bird may cache nuts, insects, even worms in several thousand spots.

And relocate nearly all of them as needed.

While some of us humans have trouble even remembering where we put our keys,

Jays seem to see and remember the physical world in exquisite detail.

If Jays, like this stellar J, visit your yard.

Here's a puzzle game you can play with them.

Each day, preferably when the Jays aren't watching,

place a dozen peanuts in different parts of the yard.

They should be visible, but scattered.

One on top of a stump, one next to a rock, below the birdbath, you get the idea.

When a J arrives, watch how long it takes to find the nuts.

The next day, place the nuts in a different array and watch again.

Did the Jays find them quickly?

Possibly they already have a mental map of everything in the yard,

so anything new, like a peanut in a novel spot, jumps out at them.

See photos of all these birds, including that California scrub jay

you just heard on our website, birdnote.org.

I'm Mary McCann.