One reason that I love watching wildlife, and especially birds, is that I really enjoy studying their behavior. One aspect of behavior that’s quite interesting is seeing how various animals get from one place to another. From the inchworm that moves by stretching out and drawing its back half up to the millipede that uses huge numbers of legs, to a snake that slithers, to a birds that flies, locomotion is extremely important to most of the animal kingdom. And of course, some creatures have multiple ways of getting around. Birds are probably the best known example of that. They fly to move long distances or to move quickly, but they are also capable of moving around on the ground, and some also swim. When moving on the ground most bird species walk, putting one leg in front of the other, but some are well known for hopping rather than walking. Hopping is the preferred mechanism for land movement in the Corvidae family which includes crows, jays, ravens, and magpies. It’s always interesting to watch the local crows and jays hop from place to place. Sometimes they are even amazingly fast. It’s even more fun to try to catch these guys hopping around in a photograph. After a few unsuccessful attempts, I finally managed to capture this blue jay (Cyanocitta cristata) as he hopped around on a nearby tree branch while hunting for insects in the bark. By studying the bird’s behavior it became apparent when it was getting ready to move, which made getting the desired shot a little bit easier. That’s not the primary reason I study behavior, but it definitely is a nice side effect.