The super intelligent Black Billed Magpie.

[Barry Willis]

I just started feeding these guys every morning, six of them, a week ago. Should have been doing it years ago, too late smart. I've been feeding them dog kibbles that Matty doesn't like and some beef wieners that I don't like. I expect in the next couple days or so I will have at least two of them eating out of my hand, came pretty close this morning. Magpies are in fact super intelligent. Same as crows, they recognize faces and will quite often bring gifts to those that feed and look after them, it may be a pine needle or a leaf or something shinny they find and they will go out of their way in search for the right item that they are happy with to do so, pretty special I think.

[Britton Grant]

That is so cool. It is amazing that some animals can be so at ease with people. I was born in Sault Ste Marie and did a lot of hunting and fishing north of the Soo towards Wawa. There was a bird there we called a whiskeyjack. It would be about the same size as those magpies only a grey colour.  I have seen times when we stopped in the bush to have a sandwich and these birds would appear out of no where and you could feed them. One time a bird flew in and sat on my friends hand and ate bread crusts he fed them.  They were  very friendly and seemed to have no fear of us. I miss things like that.

[Barry Willis]

I am glad you enjoyed it. Not to brag but my family and friends say I have a way with animals, for some reason they are drawn to me and will almost come to within petting range. There was a time my wife and I were on a wildlife photography trip in Kananaskis Alberta. We began hiking up a mountain and we spotted a herd of big horn sheep. My wife stayed back and I hiked up the mountain for closer shots. I sat on a rock and began taking pictures as they came closer. My wife kept pointing and I am thinking yeah I see them, then see made a above and down point so I finally clued in and turned around and here was a big horn ram behind me within arms reach. I got some awesome pics of him on 35mm, no digital back then. I've had deer, moose, and even bears approach me and in most case with no harm to me. There were a few hairy and frightful times though that they weren't approaching out of curiosity or kindness, usually during breeding breeding season. They wanted me out of their living room LOL.

We have whiskey jacks out here as well, More times than not when we are hunting they come looking for a hand out.

Here are a few pics of a decent mule deer I have posted before that I had been taking pics of for a few months. he would let my get fairly close to him but he, as you can see he always had a devilish look in his eyes and never took them off me. I named him Malsum, the devil deer. I was to enter a photo contest that very morning in January at the Alberta fish and Game antler and horn measure that I had won several years in a row and wasn't happy of my pics of him so I went out that morning looking for him, he was where I expected I would find him browsing. As soon as he saw me he charged. I had no where to go so I had no choice but to just stand there, hold my ground and photograph him. He stopped just a few steps away and looked to the east as much as to say, Oh good morning, I'm just looking over there. This is a short version of the charge.

As Shag pointed out, there's a time to shoot with the camera and times to shoot with a rifle, I was only armed with my camera and he's absolutely right. I'm lucky he didn't gore me as I never would have survived with them antlers and his size and strength. It was totally unexpected. I was back in the middle of no where and never let anyone know where I was.

And yes I won the photo contest Haha.  The pics aren't all that sharp as they are digital pics of 35mm prints. 

I have a lot more pics of deer coming within arms reach. One, I actually slapped his head good and hard as he was trying to mount me during the rut.

Edited September 30 by Barry Willis