In the winter issue (arriving in mailboxes any day now), there’s a supernatural tale about a fateful encounter between a logging camp villain and a gorby – one of the many names for what is formally called a Canada Jay. According to writer Ross Caron:
Gorby is thought to be derived from the Scots-Irish gorb, meaning ‘glutton’ or ‘greedy animal,’ with the name likely having spread to Maine via New Brunswick woodsmen in the 1800s.
While it seems unfair to call any bird that ekes out its living in the winter woods “gluttonous,” there’s no doubt of the species’ boldness in pursuit of food. Like other members of the corvid family, it’s intelligent and quick to adapt to new opportunities. Case in point – these photos from Prentiss & Carlisle forester Lonnie Jandreau, who recently shared his lunch with a gorby while out on a job in northern Maine.
