I understand you are upset your backyard friends were hurt, potentially by the jay. As I said, I empathize greatly with that, as I’ve watched the deaths of some of my own backyard friends to other animals. It’s very reasonable to be upset that it happened, but you just seem a bit more angry than is reasonable. That I don’t like, because I have to work with cases where people do act on that anger, and with this being my introduction to you, it did not make a good impression.

Do Eurasian jays not have an equal right to exist as the birds you chose to love? If it did indeed harm them, it was not out of malice, it is just what jays are sometimes meant to do. You don’t have to enjoy that part of them, but from reading about them, they eat more insects, eggs, and sometimes even birds during the early half of the year, and then become peaceful nut and seed gatherers in the second half. That’s how they ensure their survival. That jay is someone else’s favorite bird, just as the one that sadly was killed this time was yours. Eventually that jay will become someone else’s meal as well.

If you want to deter him from living near you, that is your prerogative to try, if you are abiding by your local laws at least in doing so. Or since the damage is already done, you could learn more about this bird who has also found your yard to be a lovely and safe place now too. It is a corvid, like crows, ravens, and other jays. They are highly intelligent for birds, have great vocal abilities, and will do many quirky and entertaining things. Many birds will chase off or kill other birds and their eggs/babies. They are still little dinosaurs. If you dislike all birds that do that, you will likely have very few left to enjoy.

Cats are one thing, as they are not natural. There should not be so many of them, they should not be everywhere, and they should not be killing even a fraction of the birds they do. They are a human made problem. But a family of jays is 100% natural. Being mad at it is like being mad at the ocean after a flood.

It is not your fault this happened. You have provided a safe and wonderful space for your birds. They have given you years of joy. You will always have wonderful thoughts of those birds. But this is one of the normal outcomes for a wild animal. I like bunnies and mice and squirrels and other fuzzy little guys. But I also like birds of prey. There is conflict. There are winners and losers. But it’s temporary and all part of the way life works. Do mourn your animal friends, but this is your second day being upset about it. And coming to a bird friendly forum to trash a bird doesn’t feel like the right space to publicly reflect on that anger as you come to terms with it. I don’t know what offmychest type communities we have for example, but something like that might be more appropriate. But a space like this is going to have people like me that are going to be a little less sympathetic when we’re reading insults and hostilities directed at a living creature. I’ve got no ill will toward you, but I’m going to be concerned when I read someone getting mad at one specific animal.