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One of the intriguing mystery tidbits of the IBWO literature is the fact that Blue Jays on rare occasions do a spot-on imitation of the Ivory-bill 'kent' or 'henk' call. Blue Jays of course are known as excellent MIMICS, so the obvious question is, "what THE HEY are they mimicking!?" Some believe it is a matter of pure coincidence -- Blue Jays make a great variety of sounds and by sheer chance one of those sounds ends up being the same as the IBWO call (...how realistic is that?). Another explanation is that Blue Jays did indeed learn to make the call centuries ago in the presence of IBWOs and simply continue to pass it along across the generations (although with less frequency), despite no longer hearing it or being reinforced for making it (again, how realistic is THAAAT??). The fact that even Blue Jays residing in regions where IBWOs NEVER EVER existed, have been heard to make the call on occasion indicates to many that this behavior is pure coincidence or otherwise meaningless. Yet the very rarity with which the sound is made (...I've only heard it once in my life) is itself an intriguing piece of data, especially given that so much of their repertoire is repeated frequently.
Just one more thing to think... or wonder, about. . . . .
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