Pinyon Jay Group Survey Report 10/5/2022

Photos by Dave Reynolds.

Report by Linda St-Cyr.  Starting from the parking lot at the top of Peavine Creek Road and hiking up, 11 Pinyon Jay followers observed 122 Pinyon Jays (a life bird for at least 3 people!) over a 2-hour period on the morning of 10/5/22.  The Pinyon Jays flew in a northerly direction in several groups from the houses below to the foothills above.  It’s interesting that the area hosts Jeffrey and Ponderosa Pines, but no Pinyon Pines.  The Pinyon Jays seem to be getting supplementary food around the houses (peanut shells were visible on the ground at the lower elevations) and they could be preparing to cache at the higher elevations although we did not actually see caching behavior.  The Pinyon Jay survey volunteers practiced submitting data to Great Basin Bird Observatory via the Survey 123 app.  An extra perk was the Golden Eagle who often appears near the peaks when we’re in this area.  See the eBird trip report for the full species list.