Uploaded May 2015 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
Over the course of 6 weeks in fairly close proximity to a new family of Western Scrub Jays, I developed a sort of understanding with the birds. I give them food, and they eat it! Of course there's no such thing as a free lunch, and this one also comes with a price - the birds have to pose for the camera, and sign a publicity release form so that the YouTube community can share in their adventures. =)
Since I had been spending so much time around the nest, the birds became fairly comfortable and no longer saw me as a threat. They went about their daily business, foraging at my feet and shuttling food back to the nest.
In these scenes, we see a "staged" feeding area where worms (which I dug up in the yard earlier that morning) are set out on a wooden platform in front of the camera(s). I am sitting about 3 feet away and the cameras are as close as 15 inches. Only the female came down for the free goodies. The male preferred to forage far and wide, returning every hour or so with a gullet full of fresh chow for the family, leaving the nearby easy pickins' for mom. Only 20 feet away, the chicks watched from the nest, eagerly awaiting the treats which would arrive shortly.
These scenes were filmed with a Canon HF100 HD camcorder, hand-held and sitting on a table. This is raw, un-edited footage, complete with all the annoying noises of suburbia. Series filmed 5-09-2015.
High resolution still images from this event are available as Free downloads for personal/non-profit use here: jcmdi.com/freephotos/index24.html
Full-length playlist with tons of footage from this documentary on TheNatureStation YouTube channel is here: youtube.com/playlist?list=PLmGxbF8AsV6Bs2BSsBBb2fWZLLV18_t0l
Contains JCMDI Catalog #: V18393,V18394,V18395,V18396,V18397,V18398,V18399,V18400,V18401,V18402,V18403,V18404,V18405,
Note: The audio and video material contained herein is copyright 2015 JCM Digital Imaging, however, you may download this footage directly from YouTube and use it free of charge in your own non-profit/non-commercial YouTube videos, school projects, etc. The full free usage policy and YouTube copyright notice/ad info can be found here (please read before using JCMDI material): jcmdi.com/stockfootage/faq.html#freeusage jcmdi.com/stockfootage/faq.html#partner
Over the course of 6 weeks in fairly close proximity to a new family of Western Scrub Jays, I developed a sort of understanding with the birds. I give them food, and they eat it! Of course there's no such thing as a free lunch, and this one also comes with a price - the birds have to pose for the camera, and sign a publicity release form so that the YouTube community can share in their adventures. =)
Since I had been spending so much time around the nest, the birds became fairly comfortable and no longer saw me as a threat. They went about their daily business, foraging at my feet and shuttling food back to the nest.
In these scenes, we see a "staged" feeding area where worms (which I dug up in the yard earlier that morning) are set out on a wooden platform in front of the camera(s). I am sitting about 3 feet away and the cameras are as close as 15 inches. Only the female came down for the free goodies. The male preferred to forage far and wide, returning every hour or so with a gullet full of fresh chow for the family, leaving the nearby easy pickins' for mom. Only 20 feet away, the chicks watched from the nest, eagerly awaiting the treats which would arrive shortly.
These scenes were filmed with a Canon HF100 HD camcorder, hand-held and sitting on a table. This is raw, un-edited footage, complete with all the annoying noises of suburbia. Series filmed 5-09-2015.
High resolution still images from this event are available as Free downloads for personal/non-profit use here: jcmdi.com/freephotos/index24.html
Full-length playlist with tons of footage from this documentary on TheNatureStation YouTube channel is here: youtube.com/playlist?list=PLmGxbF8AsV6Bs2BSsBBb2fWZLLV18_t0l
Contains JCMDI Catalog #: V18393,V18394,V18395,V18396,V18397,V18398,V18399,V18400,V18401,V18402,V18403,V18404,V18405,
Note: The audio and video material contained herein is copyright 2015 JCM Digital Imaging, however, you may download this footage directly from YouTube and use it free of charge in your own non-profit/non-commercial YouTube videos, school projects, etc. The full free usage policy and YouTube copyright notice/ad info can be found here (please read before using JCMDI material): jcmdi.com/stockfootage/faq.html#freeusage jcmdi.com/stockfootage/faq.html#partner
