I have a customer who wants a fox mounted with a bluejay in its mouth. Does anyone raise these types of birds ? I know I cant legaly take a wild one but I figured a pen raised one would be okay if anyone even raises them. Any help would be appreciated... Mark
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After all, these are protected species by any stretch.
BUT, does you customer understand that such a depiction is completely unnatural. Anything's possible, but a fox and a blue jay are hardly ever going to cross paths. They are sentinel birds usually found in pairs or flocks that alert the woods to such a presence. Ever seen the flock around snakes, cats, and yes, foxes, when you're in the woods. A squirrel or a gamebird, or a rabbit would be much more realistic than a blue jay ever would anyway.
Or has a rebilatated license to sell as a taxidermy species. Take a quail, squirrel, or any game bird that's legal to take and mount the fox with it. Learn what the migratorty bird act is, and mount accordingly. Blue Jays are a protected species. Case closed! unless your mounting it for educational purpose's a blue can't be mounted.
Coyote
Im aware of the migratory bird act. I agree it was an unusual request and I did try to convince him that a pheasant or quail would be better suited. It was one of those cases of "I saw this fox with a bluejay in its mouth and thats what I want". Just trying to make my customers happy without breaking the law. Anyhow thanks for the info...Mark
and painted like a blue Jay,LOL
Blue jays HATE foxes and other small predacious mammals. They will attack them from time to time and that interchange could wind up with a jay in ole reynard's mouth, but that would be rare happenstance.
Foxes,however, are opportunists. Many blue jays die from West Nile Virus and other natural causes. A fox that happened upon a dead jay would sieze the opportunity for an effortless lunch. Most foxes consume prey on site unless something disturbs the meal,or there are kits to feed.
The MBTA excludes all but game species from captive breeding. when I was a kid, you could bop a blue jay for a mount without concern, but like so many things that went by the wayside, that privilege no longer exists.
With the exception of fledgling birds, foxes do not often get the chance to prey on avian neighbors in the first place. They do consume some waterfowl during the annual molt, but that too is a low impact predation.