Slog
News & ArtsWednesday, November 2, 2011
Animals The Redemption of Crows or :-)
Posted by Charles Mudede on Wed, Nov 2, 2011 at 1:50 PM
Near the Yesler and 12th, the crows go crazy. I've been in this situation before. And what I learned is that crows do not make lots of noise for no reason. What is going on here? What's their bloody problem? I look up. 15 or so crows on power lines and tree branches. I look down... a dead crow on the road. Yes, I have been in this situation before. And so I do what I didn't do the last time: I stop, slowly turn, and quickly walk away from the commotion. The crows do not chase me, as they did the last time when I walked by a dead bird like it ain't no thing.
The crows return their attention to their fallen brother or sister. I cross the street and observe the situation from a safe distance. The worried birds on the lines and branches; the dead bird on the street; the cars running over the dead bird. The crows (which are increasing in number, flying in from all points of the sky) can do something about the pedestrians but nothing about the cars. Suddenly I'm moved. All of this care, this cawing, this concern, this effort to save, revive, protect one of their own. This is not about food. This is about friendship. These birds are profoundly social. It's a sociality that can fathom death. A sociality that puts pigeon sociality in the shade. I can't imagine pigeons forming a circle of concern over one of their kind. Crows are no longer on my hate list.
5
The complete opposite of Yue Yue (the toddler in China who was run over twice, over the course of several minutes, before somebody picked her up off of the road).
Story here: http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/story/2011/…
Humans can be so depressing.
Story here: http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/story/2011/…
Humans can be so depressing.
6
Don't listen to the h8ers--crows are smarter and better than humans (not that that's such a high bar).
9
Crows stick together like the thugs they are. As far as we humans are concerned, they'd peck our eyes out if they thought they could get away with it.
10
It's about time. Believing a crow to be anything like a pigeon was too wrong to last. I'm happy for you.
12
P.S. You know why those crows were shooing you away from their dead brother? Because they were guarding their dinner.
Evil motherfuckers.
Evil motherfuckers.
15
They behave the same way when a comrade gets taken by a predator. I've seen this multiple times. They caw like all fuckery and fly around the predator in protest, all to no avail. No match for an eagle or falcon.
16
crows are scavengers and cannibals. They were upset because they could see a corpse ripe for eating but things like you and cars impeded their wild destruction and digestion of their fellow crow.
why do you annoy me so much?
why do you annoy me so much?
17
mudede bird-theme post days are always my favorite slog days... but accidental racism days are a close contender!
19
yeah corvids are into this funeral thing - scrub jays do it too. i know someone who is studying it. this is a scientist's take on it:
http://www.evolutionmeeting.org/engine/s…
http://www.evolutionmeeting.org/engine/s…
20
have any of you cannibalism enthusiasts ever seen a crow actually eating another crow? like, with your own eyes? i find this idea surprising.
21
Most of the corvidae (jays, crows, magpies, ravens) are smarter than most of the people I know. Better socialized, too.
22
Crows eat some nasty things, but other crows are generally not on the menu. A funeral or mourning process is very typical and if you interfere, crows have excellent facial recognition skills and will hold a grudge for up to a few years.
23
@15- Crows are actually very successful at driving off raptors. A hawk or eagle doesn't have the slow speed maneuverability to catch an alerted crow. Unless they take the crow on an initial surprise attack, they're gonna get mobbed and driven off.
24
Charles for the Andy Rooney win of the day.
And @23 has a point. You should see them take them on over near the cut.
And @23 has a point. You should see them take them on over near the cut.
25
So about 10 years ago my then-wife and I are sleeping on a saturday morning when we hear a loud explosion, followed by our power going out. Turns out that a crow had somehow blown a power transformer across the street. We could see the dead crow's feet sticking up up on top of a power pole, and just like Charles described, crows were flying in from everywhere and being super loud. SPU came in, and when they went up to repair it they knocked the dead crow off of the pole and onto the ground. I swear, the crow were shocked into silence. After the utility workers left, the gathering of crows dispersed, except for what I took to be the dead crow's mate, which hung out the rest of the day near the dead body making sad small crow sounds. I had no idea that crows were capable of such... emotion? True story.
26
I was at Woodland Park Zoo several years ago, and spotted a very noisy murder of crows (at least a hundred of them) mobbing a tree. Looking close, I spotted a large owl in that tree, sitting on a branch, with it's back to the trunk. It's amazing how fast they can assemble a good size mob for a common purpose..
27
I once found a baby crow that had fallen from it's nest and broken its neck. I picked it up before realizing it was a lost cause, it's bones jutting out and body twitching as it slowly died in agony. I put it out of it's misery and returned it to where I found it, beneath its nest.
For over two years after that, I could not walk my neighborhood without its parents chasing me. They'd fly from fence to roof to power line to tree, cawing and swooping as I tried to go about my business. For a while I tried to avoid anthropomorphizing them, but finally came to the conclusion that they saw me as the murderer of their child, and they sought vengeance. They followed me until I moved.
They definitely have feelings, and they an amazing ability to remember and problem-solve.
For over two years after that, I could not walk my neighborhood without its parents chasing me. They'd fly from fence to roof to power line to tree, cawing and swooping as I tried to go about my business. For a while I tried to avoid anthropomorphizing them, but finally came to the conclusion that they saw me as the murderer of their child, and they sought vengeance. They followed me until I moved.
They definitely have feelings, and they an amazing ability to remember and problem-solve.
29
A group of crows will single out a weaker member of the flock and kill it. They'll then watch the body for hours. They drop the body in the street to see it become disfigured by the cars. (just as they do with nuts http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hlaIBTc51…)
Crows are in fact more evil than you imagined.
Crows are in fact more evil than you imagined.
31
@29
Seen that myself. Mercilessly attacking one of their own. That probably doesn't mean they don't mourn those lost. But it seem the poor fuckers they kill may have committed an offense. Crow justice system? Yeah... those fuckers are smart.
Seen that myself. Mercilessly attacking one of their own. That probably doesn't mean they don't mourn those lost. But it seem the poor fuckers they kill may have committed an offense. Crow justice system? Yeah... those fuckers are smart.
32
BTP @29, the video you linked is an excerpt from "A Murder of Crows," an episode of PBS' Nature that came out in 2010. The majority of it is set in Seattle because the UW has been researching crow intelligence for years.
You can currently watch it on Comcast's VOD or stream the entire episode online. Fascinating creatures.
You can currently watch it on Comcast's VOD or stream the entire episode online. Fascinating creatures.
34
When I saw my first crow funeral, that's when I found a new respect for crows too. Seen a few since then, now that I know what to look for when I hear them caw together like that. It's creepy and cool to see.
35
I don't wear my cowboy hat on evening walks anymore, choosing a baseball cap (or toque in cold weather) instead. That's because some Yosemite Sam rancher nearby regularly blasts crows with a shotgun, and if I go out with a wide-brimmed anything, they'll follow me for miles, shrieking outrage all the way. Little do they realize I'm a great admirer, and happy to have my days bookended by their mild-mannered burbling and cronkling in the nearby Lombardy poplars.
36
Crows are great and now you are great.
I feed the crows around my house sometimes, just to stay on their good side. Not regularly; I don't want them getting to expect it and getting mad when I don't. Just... once in a while, I'll throw one of 'em a couple morsels of whatever I'm eating. Just enough to remain a good guy.
I feed the crows around my house sometimes, just to stay on their good side. Not regularly; I don't want them getting to expect it and getting mad when I don't. Just... once in a while, I'll throw one of 'em a couple morsels of whatever I'm eating. Just enough to remain a good guy.
40
Crows will inherit the earth.
They are maddening at times, but their intelligence is terrifying.
Always respect smart things.
They are maddening at times, but their intelligence is terrifying.
Always respect smart things.
41
I have always loved crows for their intelligence, but not Mudede. However, this posting and accompanying emoticon is so endearingly cute, I have changed my mind.
42
While a crow will never be my favorite loud-beast-that-hates-naps, i appreciate all of their intelligences and socialities. And i appreciate your observations and insights, Charles.
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