How To Keep Blue Jays Away

Keeping blue jays away has always been challenging. These critters are among the most intelligent creatures in the wild.

However, from our years of research and experience, we have found exciting and accessible ways to frighten them off.

You can employ one or more practical deterrent strategies to ensure these noisy and bullying songbirds do not come near your yard.

So, what are these blue jay deterrent ideas? Find out below!

In the following sections, we will discuss practical ways to keep blue jays away and answer a few commonly asked questions about handling their invasion.

7 Ways To Keep Blue Jays Away

There is a high chance that Blue jays will visit you if you have other birds around.

They are known to be curious tormentors of bird feeders and their nests.

These birds attack whatever comes too close, no matter how big or little it is. Including you!

In that case, you must be on top of your A-game and carefully practice all the deterrent ideas discussed below.

So, let’s begin!

1. Always Keep Your Yard Clean

Blue jays are messy eaters. They eat almost anything they come in contact with. They will stay back and eat if they can find food around your yard.

And if you have smaller birds in your yard, make sure that you clear away their feeders and any leftovers after feeding them.

BIue jays, if given the opportunity, will push out your smaller birds from their nest. And take over their nest, making your work a bit more complicated to get rid of them.

They will become aggressive if you try to force them out and can even dive-bomb you.

At all times, ensure that your yard is neat and there is no available seed for them. By cleaning, you do not allow them to sniff your yard.

2. Change the Seeds That You Serve Your Birds

Blue jays dislike safflower and nyjer thistle seeds. More often, feed your birds with these seeds.

Blue jays can be picky about what they eat. And will not come close to your yard when they notice you do not have their delicacies.

Your birds might not overly enjoy eating safflower and nyjer thistle seeds repeatedly. You can mix the seeds with sunflower and millet seeds occasionally.

3. Get a Cat

Naturally, cats and birds are not the best of friends. You can take advantage of their poor tolerance for one another to eliminate them.

Get a cat, an outdoor cat, to be precise. An outdoor cat shows more tenacity toward catching birds than indoor cats.

The Blue jays will flee from your yard as soon as the cat starts nabbing one or two of them.

4. Install Wind Chimes

Suppose you seek a more nonviolent approach to keeping Blue jays out. Or, if you are not a lover of cats, installing wind chimes is for you.

Wind chimes are nonviolent, but Blue jays hate the sounds they produce.

Apart from the noise Blue jays hate from the wind chimes, the reflection from the device also scares them off.

Most wind chimes are made up of metallic crystalline and liquid crystal materials.

5. Fix a Motion Sensor to Your Yard

The motion sensor works just fine as the other deterrents mentioned above. Although, it follows a different approach from the others.

If you have a fence, install a motion sensor on the top. You can also install it on the wall of your house as well.

The motion sensor produces an ultrasonic sound and light. Blue jays become scared and run off if they try to come close to your yard.

The downside of a motion sensor is that you can chase other birds away. So, you have to be sure before you opt to use one.

6. Use a Fake Owl To Scare Them Away

In the wild, every predator has its prey, and it is the same for the Blue jays. As bullish as they are, Blue jays know it is best to avoid owls.

You can take advantage of their fears and buy decoys of their predators. Place them around your yard. The owl, falcon, and hawk are the prominent predators of the Blue jays.

However, the owl is the most successful predator of Blue jays. Blue jays hate owls of any shape or form, with good reason. Owls, big or small, eat Blue jays.

So, when a Blue jay discovers any owl, it quickly alerts its gangs far and wide to scamper for safety. Occasionally, change the direction of your decoys to make the birds believe they are true.

7. Use Unappealing Feeders

As discussed earlier, you can be a bird lover that keeps other birds. In this case, make Blue jays believe your bird feeders are not worth eating from. Buy feeders that benefit your smaller birds.

You can also consider adding weights to the perch. Or, you can attach an empty soda bottle to the nest. Adding weights to the perch will make it uncomfortable for more extensive and heavier birds like the Blue jays.

They will not be able to stand while trying to eat comfortably. Also, the soda bottle will roll around under the weight of the Blue jays. But will stay still when smaller birds land on it.

Conclusion

Blue jays have a protective nature, which leads to aggressive behavior. Blue jays can be very aggressive, especially with eggs in their nests.

Also, they are bold while protecting their food source and territory. They can dive-bomb you, your kids, and your pets. They can also be loud and pop in and around your yard.

These seven steps should assist you in achieving your dream yard without Blue jays interfering.