The Midnight Call of a Steller's Jay in Colorado

I hear the raucous throaty call of a midnight blue Steller's Jay and look outside to see him posing in the early evening moonlight. Jays have quite a diversity of calls and I wish I knew what they all meant. Sometimes it's a fast clicking noise. Other times they sound just like a hawk's cry and the little birds flee from the feeder. I think I know what that one means. Then there is the sound that makes me think I live in an equatorial jungle. We call it the cry of the monkey bird because it does sound like a monkey. At least to me. But this night he sounded like his brother, the raven. Another irascible bird I admire and another story.

Midnight Jay
A brilliant blue Steller's Jay perches on a silvery blue fence rail in a night time midnight setting.
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Etsy JulieMagersSoulen

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A Naturalist's View of Feathers

Since I was a child I have been in the habit of collecting little pieces of nature. I have collected a whole basket of heart shaped rocks not to mention a boat load of other rocks I found interesting. I have a giant beetle and a dragonfly that are still iridescent. Sometimes I will spot a flash of color and be rewarded with a brilliant feather. Flickers and Steller's Jays are common in the northern Rocky Mountains and I have collected their feathers too; one brilliant orange the other deepest blue. Which one do you like the best? What do you like to collect?

Flicker Feather
A single orange feather rests on a blanket of sparkling snow.
Flicker Feather, Northern Colorado
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Jay Feather
A single blue feather rests on a blanket of sparkling snow. Steller's Jay Feather, Northern Colorado
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Etsy JulieMagersSoulen