Problem Solving

Is It Legal to Kill Blue Jays at a Bird Feeder?

No, not for raiding a bird feeder. In the US the blue jay is federally protected, and no standing rule lets anyone kill one. A federal permit needs real damage and nonlethal measures still in use. Canada's federal law leaves jays out, but all six provinces we read protect them, and Ontario lists the blue jay as specially protected.

No, not to protect a bird feeder. In the US the blue jay is a federally protected bird, so killing one is a crime unless a federal rule allows it. No standing rule covers blue jays. The only way is a federal depredation permit, and the US Fish and Wildlife Service grants lethal control "ONLY ... in conjunction with ongoing nonlethal measures." Canada is different. Its federal bird law leaves the whole crow family out, jays included, so each province decides. All six provinces we read protect blue jays anyway, and Ontario lists the blue jay as a specially protected bird.

We read the federal rules in both countries, Texas law and six provinces, each in its own text. The same question for crows is on is it legal to kill crows, and for grackles and blackbirds on is it legal to kill grackles. Those birds have a federal no-permit rule. Blue jays do not, and that is the gap this page is about.

What "protected", "take" and "depredation" mean#

The blue jay is the crested blue, white and black jay of the eastern two thirds of the continent, from southern Canada to the Gulf. It belongs to the crow family, Corvidae, along with the Steller's jay of the West, the Canada jay and the crows and ravens. That family tie matters, because several of the laws below sort birds by family.

• Protected. A protected bird may not be killed, trapped or kept unless a rule allows it. In the US, the federal list sits in 50 CFR 10.13. In Canada, each province keeps its own list or schedule.
• Take. The word wildlife law uses for harming a wild animal. The Migratory Bird Treaty Act lists "pursue, hunt, take, capture, kill," and more. Shooting and trapping both count.
• Depredation. Damage done by wildlife. The Fish and Wildlife Service defines it as "damage or loss caused by birds," including "agricultural damage, private property damage, threats to human health and safety, and threats to recovery of protected wildlife."
• Depredation order. A standing federal rule that names certain birds and lets people kill them in set cases with no permit. Crows and grackles have one. Blue jays do not.
• Depredation permit. A permit you apply for, case by case, to kill a protected bird that is causing damage.

So for a blue jay in the US there is no standing door, only the permit door. In Canada the door is whatever the province builds.

The rules we read#

Start with the "At a feeder" column.

No row lets you kill a blue jay because it eats your seed. Three provinces have a property damage rule that does not leave jays out, and each one is read below.

Why the answers online disagree#

Search the question and two answers come back. One says jays are protected by the migratory bird treaty, so it is always illegal. The other says jays are in the crow family, and crows can be shot, so jays can too. Each is wrong in one country.

The crow answer fails in the US. The federal no-permit order covers "blackbirds, cowbirds, crows, grackles, and magpies," by species name. It names three crows and no jays. Family does not carry over, so the blue jay stays fully protected.

The treaty answer fails in Canada. Canada's federal list of birds it does not protect includes "Corvidae (jays, crows and ravens)." So in Canada the protection is real, but it comes from the province, not from Ottawa. A Canadian who reads a US page and assumes the same federal rule applies has the right result for the wrong reason, and the wrong office to call.

Two more things muddy the results. Several top pages are about the Eurasian jay in Britain, a different bird under different law. And the Fish and Wildlife Service's own depredation FAQ, revised in February 2023, still prints an older table. One row lists 50 CFR 21.46 for "Scrub Jay, Steller's Jay" and "Nut Crops" in Oregon and Washington. That order still exists as 50 CFR 21.156. It has never covered blue jays.

One feeder walked through three places#

Take a tray of peanuts that four blue jays clear every morning before the chickadees get a turn. The owner wants the jays gone for good. Here is how the rules read in three places.

1. Texas. The blue jay is on the federal list, and neither federal order names it. That leaves a depredation permit. The application asks for "the nature of the crops or other interests being injured" and "the extent of such injury." Peanuts set out for birds, eaten by birds, are a hard case to make. Texas law adds its own ban. Section 64.002(a) bars killing "a bird that is not a game bird," and the blue jay is not in any of its exceptions.
2. Ontario. Section 5(1) bans hunting any wild bird that is not a game bird. The blue jay is not one of the six birds exempted. The Minister cannot authorize hunting it either, because section 5(2)(d) excludes a "specially protected bird." What remains is section 31, which lets you kill wildlife on your land if you believe "on reasonable grounds" that it "is damaging or is about to damage" your property. Seed you put out yourself is hard to call damage to your own property.
3. Manitoba. The blue jay is a listed protected species, but section 46 lets the owner of private land kill wildlife "for the purpose of defending or preserving their property." Its list of exclusions does not include protected species. The Act does not define property damage, so the question is the same as in Ontario: is a tray of peanuts you filled for birds being damaged when birds eat it? A kill under section 46 must be reported to an officer within 10 days.

Now change one fact. Suppose the jays are not at the tray but in an open shed, tearing into stored bags of seed. That is damage to property in a plainer sense. In Quebec, section 67 would then let you kill an animal "causing damage to his property," but only "if he is unable to frighten the animal away or prevent it from causing damage." Closing the shed door prevents it. So even in the easier case, the law points to the door first.

US federal law: no order covers blue jays#

The Migratory Bird Treaty Act makes it unlawful "by any means or in any manner, to pursue, hunt, take, capture, kill" a protected bird "unless and except as permitted by regulations." The protected list in 50 CFR 10.13 includes "Cyanocitta cristata, Blue Jay." It also lists Steller's jay, Canada jay, pinyon jay, Mexican jay and four scrub-jays.

Breaking the Act is a misdemeanor, with a fine of "not more than $15,000" or prison of "not more than six months, or both" (16 USC 707(a)).

The rule that lets people kill crows and grackles without a permit is 50 CFR 21.150. It names 14 species: three blackbirds, three cowbirds, three crows, four grackles and the black-billed magpie. No jay is on it. The rule that sends everything else to a permit, 50 CFR 21.100, says a depredation permit is required "Except as provided in §§ 21.150, 21.153, and 21.156." Section 21.153 covers horned larks, house finches and white-crowned sparrows in California. That leaves 21.156.

The one jay order, and why it is not this one#

50 CFR 21.156 is the only federal order that names jays. It covers California scrub jays and Steller's jays, and every part of it is narrow.

• Who: "Landowners, sharecroppers, tenants, or their employees or agents actually engaged in the production of nut crops."
• When: only "between August 1 and December 1 in any year."
• Where: Clark, Cowlitz and Lewis counties in Washington, and Benton, Clackamas, Lane, Linn, Marion, Multnomah, Polk, Washington and Yamhill counties in Oregon.
• Why: birds "committing or about to commit serious depredations to nut crops."
• How: "only by trapping or shooting," with an annual report of take due by January 31.

A walnut or hazelnut grower in those counties may use it in the fall. A homeowner with a Steller's jay at a peanut feeder in Portland may not, because a feeder is not a nut crop. Blue jays are not in the order at all.

What a depredation permit takes#

For a blue jay anywhere in the US, a permit under 50 CFR 21.100 is the only lawful way to kill one. The Fish and Wildlife Service FAQ sets out what that means.

• Purpose. A permit "is intended to provide short-term relief for bird damage until long-term, non-lethal measures can be implemented."
• Nonlethal first and throughout. "Capture or killing of birds cannot be the primary methods used to address depredation and will ONLY be authorized in conjunction with ongoing nonlethal measures."
• Two forms. The application is Form 3-200-13, plus a "Form 37 Permit Review Form" from USDA Wildlife Services, which you get by calling 866-487-3297.
• Limits. The permit lists the species, the number and the methods. It lasts no more than one year.
• Ammunition and reports. Nontoxic ammunition is required with firearms. An annual report is due even if you took no birds.
• State law. "Some States require a permit in addition to the Federal depredation permit," and local gun rules still apply.

The FAQ counts "private property damage" as depredation, but nothing we read treats seed eaten at a feeder as damage. At a feeder, the "long-term, non-lethal measures" are fully in your hands. You can change the feeder tomorrow.

Texas: the state ban too#

Texas Parks and Wildlife Code 64.002(a) says no person may "catch, kill, injure, pursue, or possess" a bird "that is not a game bird." Nor may anyone "disturb or destroy the eggs, nest, or young" of one. Both bans apply "Except as provided by this code," and the section then lists its exceptions.

• Subsection (b): "European starlings, English sparrows, and feral rock doves" may be killed "at any time in any manner."
• Subsection (c): no permit is needed to control certain blackbirds, "all grackles, cowbirds, crows, or magpies" when they cause damage.

Jays appear in neither. In Texas a blue jay is covered by both the federal ban and the state one. Feeding birds in the state is covered on Texas.

Canada: left to the provinces#

Environment and Climate Change Canada keeps the list of birds the Migratory Birds Convention Act protects. On the same page it lists the "Families of birds that are not included in the convention and therefore not protected by the Migratory Birds Convention Act, 1994." One line reads "Corvidae (jays, crows and ravens)." The page was last modified April 16, 2026.

So there is no federal ban on killing a jay in Canada, and no federal permit to get. Every province we read fills the gap, in different words.

Ontario: specially protected#

Ontario Regulation 669/98 sorts wildlife into schedules. Schedule 8, "Specially Protected Birds," has eight entries: American white pelican, belted kingfisher, blue jay, Brewer's blackbird, Canada jay, common raven, rusty blackbird and yellow-headed blackbird.

The label adds to a ban that already exists. Section 5(1) of the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Act already says no one may "hunt or trap specially protected wildlife or any bird that belongs to a species that is wild by nature and is not a game bird." The six exempt birds are the American crow, brown-headed cowbird, common grackle, house sparrow, red-winged blackbird and starling. Being specially protected then closes two more doors. The Minister may authorize hunting "any other bird, other than a specially protected bird" (s. 5(2)(d)). And keeping a live one needs a licence (s. 40(1)).

Section 31 is the exception. It applies to "wildlife," which the Act defines to include specially protected wildlife. It does not apply to moose or woodland caribou. It covers white-tailed deer, American elk and other wildlife "prescribed by the regulations" only with the Minister's authorization or as the regulations allow. A blue jay is in neither group, so section 31 reaches it. You may not kill "more wildlife than is necessary to protect the property," or cause "unnecessary suffering." Section 7 also protects the nests and eggs of wild birds. Its exceptions are the same six birds, so jay nests stay protected. Feeder by-laws in Canadian towns are on are bird feeders illegal in Canada.

Manitoba: protected, with a property defence#

Manitoba's Wildlife Act lists "Blue Jay" and "Gray (Canada) Jay" in Division 6 of Schedule A, "Protected Species," beside the common raven, all owls and all hawks and eagles. Section 20 says no person shall "hunt, trap, take, kill or capture" a protected species "Except as may be otherwise permitted by this Act."

Section 46 is one such permission. It begins "Despite any other provision of this Act." The owner or occupier of private land, or a person they authorize, may kill wildlife on the land "for the purpose of defending or preserving their property." The exceptions are "a moose, caribou, deer, antelope, cougar, elk or game bird." A blue jay is none of those. The killing must be reported "to an officer within 10 days." Section 49 separately protects the nests and eggs of every bird in Division 6, blue jays included, unless a licence or permit allows it.

Quebec: hunting banned unless allowed#

Quebec starts from the other end. Section 56 of its wildlife act says "The hunting and trapping of animals is prohibited," and the Minister then allows species by regulation. An "animal" includes any bird that propagates naturally in the wild.

The province's small game list, updated January 16, 2026, names the American crow, red-winged blackbird, starling, common grackle, brown-headed cowbird and rock pigeon among the birds. The blue jay is not on it.

Section 67 allows a person to "capture, move or kill an animal attacking him or causing damage to his property." The condition is that "he is unable to frighten the animal away or prevent it from causing damage." Section 68 then says a dead or wounded animal must be declared "to a wildlife protection officer" without delay.

Saskatchewan and Alberta: crows yes, jays no#

Saskatchewan. Section 4(1)(l) of the Wildlife Regulations, 1981 lets anyone hunt, with no licence, "corvidae (crows, magpies and jays), other than blue jays, gray jays, Clark's nutcrackers and ravens." The blue jay is named as an exception. Outside that list, section 25 of the Wildlife Act, 1998 says no one may hunt wildlife except "at the times, in the places and in the manner prescribed," and with a licence where one is required.

Alberta. The Wildlife Regulation puts the blue jay, Steller's jay and gray jay in Part 5 of Schedule 4, "Non-game Animals." The American crow and black-billed magpie are in Part 6, "non-licence animals." The difference is large. The Wildlife Act defines "hunt" to include "capture or wilfully injure or kill." Section 24 then bans hunting wildlife without a licence for that kind of wildlife, except that for non-licence wildlife the rule "applies only to trapping." Section 25 bans hunting "if there is no open season for that wildlife." Jays appear in the regulation only in that Part 5 list. No season or licence in it names them.

Alberta's regulation also shows how seriously it treats the category. Section 7(1) says the rules apply to endangered animals "in exactly the same way that they apply with respect to non-game animals other than raven."

British Columbia: no exemption for jays#

Section 34 of BC's Wildlife Act makes it an offence, "except as provided by regulation," to possess, take, injure, molest or destroy "a bird or its egg." The Designation and Exemption Regulation then prescribes as wildlife "all species of birds" native to Canada or the United States. That takes in blue jays and Steller's jays alike.

Two exemptions in that regulation could matter, and both stop short of jays. Section 2 lets a person kill wildlife "for the protection of that person's property," but only wildlife "listed in Schedule B or C." Section 11.3(2) lifts the section 34 ban for birds in the same schedules. The Schedule B birds are "all species of the genus Corvus," except the common raven, plus the black-billed magpie and brown-headed cowbird. Jays are in the crow family but not in the genus Corvus, so they are not on it.

Nests and feathers#

The same protection reaches a jay's nest, eggs and feathers. In the US, the Act covers "any part, nest, or egg." The FWS FAQ says no permit is needed to destroy an inactive nest, "one without eggs or chicks present," as long as it is not kept. The details are on is it illegal to remove a bird nest. A dropped blue feather is covered in is it illegal to keep bird feathers.

What works without killing anything#

Scaring jays is legal without a permit. 50 CFR 21.100 says "No permit is required merely to scare or herd depredating migratory birds," apart from endangered species and eagles. The FWS FAQ says the same.

Then make the feeder hard for a jay to use. A blue jay weighs about 3 oz (85 g) and needs room to stand. A caged feeder with openings around 1.5 inches (4 cm) lets chickadees and finches in and keeps jays out. A tube with short perches and no tray does much the same. Switching to safflower and stopping peanuts and corn does most of the rest. The full plan, in order of what works best, is on if you decide you want fewer jays. Our blue jay profile covers the feeders they empty fastest.

If the worry is jays raiding songbird nests rather than seed, the nearest case in the FWS FAQ is "threats to recovery of protected wildlife." A robin or cardinal nest in your yard is not a recovery program, so this is not a damage case under any rule we read.

Where this page stops applying#

This page reads one state and six provinces, not fifty states and thirteen provinces and territories. Most states have their own nongame bird law, so check yours as well as the federal rule. We did not read the Atlantic provinces or the territories. In Ontario we did not read the regulations that may prescribe more wildlife under section 31(3)(b). In Alberta, Saskatchewan and British Columbia we found no property damage rule that reaches jays in the sections we read, but we did not read every regulation under those Acts. None of the laws we read defines whether eaten feeder seed is damage, so in Ontario, Manitoba and Quebec that is a question for a wildlife officer or a court. We read Saskatchewan's Act and regulations in copies archived in 2025, because the province's own site would not load. We did not read penalties outside US federal law, or any town's gun or cruelty rules, and those apply on top of every row. This is a reading of statutes, regulations and agency pages, not legal advice.