team tractor Posted May 24, 2014 Report Share Posted May 24, 2014 On tv right now they have said that 90% of oak trees are germanated by JAYS They pick the acorns then plant them after being in their gut . Don't know how truthful it is but if true it means their useful Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fisherman Mike Posted May 24, 2014 Report Share Posted May 24, 2014 Quite true.. I posted on this subject quite recently. Jays were responsible for propagating the dense oak forests of Medieval England which provided the timber for the Royal Fleet. If not for Jays we would probably all be speaking Spanish or Portuguese Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paddy Galore! Posted May 24, 2014 Report Share Posted May 24, 2014 i'll never shoot another now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
islandgun Posted May 24, 2014 Report Share Posted May 24, 2014 On tv right now they have said that 90% of oak trees are germanated by JAYS They pick the acorns then plant them after being in their gut . Don't know how truthful it is but if true it means their useful Yes mate I understand that Jays and Squirrels are the main vectors of oaks, birds generally are responsible for the distribution of many plants they eat the seed wrap it in s+++ and deposit it somewhere else. squirrels will hide the seeds and forget where they they left it . its a wonderful thing nature ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FalconFN Posted May 24, 2014 Report Share Posted May 24, 2014 I have never shot a jay (well, as a youth I did), and I tend not to shoot rooks either as I think generally they do more good than harm. I only shoot magpies (very beautiful birds) if there are lots of them about. Its all down to balance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scully Posted May 24, 2014 Report Share Posted May 24, 2014 It's one of the reasons we don't shoot them in our syndicate. A 'keeper from another shoot once shot three on one drive and was taken to one side by the landowner following the drive and discretely ####ed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
islandgun Posted May 24, 2014 Report Share Posted May 24, 2014 Are jays quite rare ? I seldom/never see one when I,m down south are they on a GL, a very fond memory as a child was watching a rookery I love the noise Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FalconFN Posted May 24, 2014 Report Share Posted May 24, 2014 Are jays quite rare ? I seldom/never see one when I,m down south are they on a GL, a very fond memory as a child was watching a rookery I love the noiseNot rare but elusive and solitary. You hear them more often than see them. I think they are on the GL because they take songbird eggs and chicks but as they don't congregate in large numbers the effect is probably small. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
team tractor Posted May 24, 2014 Author Report Share Posted May 24, 2014 I've seen a few jays around tamworth but never shot one in 20 years of shooting. Clever birds Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
strangford wildfowler Posted May 24, 2014 Report Share Posted May 24, 2014 Interesting fact ive never shot one personally but me granda used to shoot them for the feathers for fly tying. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
islandgun Posted May 24, 2014 Report Share Posted May 24, 2014 I seem to remember a Jays pin ? feather was a sort after addition to a hat band Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woodcock11 Posted May 24, 2014 Report Share Posted May 24, 2014 i'll never shoot another now. It is illegal to shoot jays in Northern Ireland and we are OVERRUN with them! However we are allowed to shoot jack snipe but cannot shoot any game on 1 February. We can shoot grouse as from 12 August but unlike Scotland, cannot shoot snipe until 1 September. We can shoot duck with lead shot except over wetlands. Until recently, it was illegal to sell hen pheasants and we cannot sell duck of any kind [including reared mallard ] even to a game dealer. A supermarket such as Sainsbury's or M&S has to have a licence to sell game..... The game licence has only just been abolished It is a funny old world - this so called United Kingdom Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FalconFN Posted May 24, 2014 Report Share Posted May 24, 2014 That is interesting, I wonder what the original reason for not being allowed to sell hen phesants was? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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