Mary's Monday Metazoan: American Crow : Pharyngula

Search

Profile

PZ Myers is a biologist and associate professor at the University of Minnesota, Morris.
…and this is a pharyngula stage embryo.
• a longer profile of yours truly
• my calendar
• Nature Network
• RichardDawkins Network
• facebook
• MySpace
• Twitter
• Atheist Nexus
• the Pharyngula chat room
(#pharyngula on irc.synirc.net)

• Quick link to the latest endless thread

Register for the Atheist Convention Melbourne 12-14 March 2010

I reserve the right to publicly post, with full identifying information about the source, any email sent to me that contains threats of violence.

I support Americans United for Separation of Church and State.

Random Quote

Conservatives only want to go back in time a couple of hundred years, Libertarians want to take us back about 100,000 years.

Rack Jite

Other Information

2005 Koufax Award
Best Expert

2006 Weblogs Award

« Scott vs. Comfort | Main | Schisms, rifts, and apologia for insanity »

Mary's Monday Metazoan: American Crow

Category: Organisms
Posted on: November 2, 2009 8:30 AM, by PZ Myers

If you'd like to see two metazoans at once, there's another photo of Carl Buell and crow in this series.

Share this: Facebook Twitter Stumbleupon Reddit Email + More

TrackBacks

TrackBack URL for this entry: http://scienceblogs.com/mt/pings/123802

Comments

Posted by: SEF | November 2, 2009 8:38 AM

That crow is a hoopy frood who really knows where its towel is.

Posted by: Michelle R | November 2, 2009 8:44 AM

I love crows. I have no idea why people dislike them so much. I can't help but being awed at them when they're in my backyard. They're so big.

Posted by: Rev. BigDumbChimp | November 2, 2009 8:46 AM

I love crows. I have no idea why people dislike them so much. I can't help but being awed at them when they're in my backyard. They're so big.

They're seemingly intelligent birds but damn they're loud when you get more than a couple together.

Posted by: AdamK | November 2, 2009 8:56 AM

I never knew, until they came to my backyard, that in addition to their noisy cawing they can sing most prettily.

Posted by: Sven DiMilo | November 2, 2009 9:07 AM

Man, these things are beautiful. Seeing a crow up close is like ... like looking through a hole in space to a world that's realer and more solid than anything in your own. They're really kind of stunning.

Having had the pleasurable privilege myself, many times, I can vouch for the veracity of Hank Fox's sentiments.
They really are among the very coolest of birds. They really are damn smart (tool-makers!), and their family lives make soap operas look quaint.

There are a few good books on crows out there; I recommend this one, and this looks interesting too.

Posted by: Sili | November 2, 2009 9:30 AM

Lossa crows and rooks around my old uni. I guess I can see why some people might feel scared when they're so many.

We had a pet crow once. My sister rescued a big chick that had been cornered by the cats. He loved to sit on heads, so my mum had to take to wearing a hat in the garden. Unfortunately we found him dead one of the first mornings after he'd had to spend the night out (we never did manage to get him housetrained).

She looks so clever. I'm slightly reminded of James Randi, too.

I seem to recall something about crows being stupider than ravens, though, when it comes to tool-usage.

Posted by: Ray Moscow | November 2, 2009 9:32 AM

I'm a corvid fan, too. They are amazing animals.

Posted by: jheartney | November 2, 2009 9:48 AM

Ten years ago we used to see them in numbers all the time, making their racket. Then West Nile virus came through, and they all disappeared. Haven't seen a crow around here in ages.

Posted by: Sven DiMilo | November 2, 2009 10:00 AM

Heh. Just had a brief, no-links comment moderated. Then I realized why--I had mentions New C*ledonian crows as the champion of tool-makers among non-human animals. Evidently the Old Scot's nym still triggers mod around here.

The other thing in that comment was the point that ravens are large crows.

#10

Posted by: Notagod | November 2, 2009 10:12 AM

Lots of pretty blue speckled eggs in the nests. I've had their buddies in crime the magpies take peanuts out of hand when held up above my head. The first time the magpie flew towards me, I flinched so the bird turned away, after that they (or it, not sure if it was the same one each time) always flew in from behind me. Great fun to suddenly have a peanut disappear from my outstretched fingers.

#11

Posted by: abys | November 2, 2009 10:21 AM

The evolutionary descendants of dinosaurs really are the best, aren't they?

#12

Posted by: Standard curve | November 2, 2009 10:30 AM

@ #3: Yeah, it's murder!

#13

Posted by: Roy | November 2, 2009 10:31 AM

#1: I was prepared for a nice thread with "boy, crows are smart" anecdotes. I was not, for example, prepared for coffee through my nose. Well played.

#14

Posted by: Kausik Datta | November 2, 2009 10:43 AM

I must nominate SEF @1 FT unequivocal W.
No questions. I laughed and laughed!

#15

Posted by: fieldguidetohummingbirds.wordpress.com | November 2, 2009 11:00 AM

SEF @ #1: Ditto Roy @ #13! It was only instant, but for a comment of that caliber I wouldn't have minded had it been premium organic shade-grown.

Rev. BDC @ #3: Crows probably say the same thing about us.

#16

Posted by: Jeff Eyges | November 2, 2009 11:09 AM

I'm partial to Corvidae myself.

Raven resources: http://www.amazon.com/Mind-Raven-Investigations-Adventures-Wolf-Birds/dp/0061136050/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top

http://www.pbs.org/wnet/nature/episodes/ravens/introduction/1506/

#17

Posted by: beth | November 2, 2009 11:38 AM

I fell in love with crows after witnessing my first crow "funeral". The whole local crow community came to my house to acknowledge the dead crow found in my yard one morning. It was surreal to see. I've seen a couple more since then, now that I know what to look for - in the winter time, the crows will come back to their neighborhoods from their roost and discover a friend who had passed in the cold night. Then they'll call everyone over and there will be waves of cawing, with crows circling and diving overhead. So if you hear a ton of crows at the crack of dawn, go out and look, because there is probably a dead crow there. But be quick! The "funeral" only lasts about 10-15 minutes or so.

I also highly recommending following the hoardes of crows to their nightly roost as a fun excursion. It is a crazy sight to see thousands of crows in one spot!

#18

Posted by: SaraJ | November 2, 2009 11:44 AM

Standard Curve at #12... well played sir (or ma'am) well played.

I love that sound that crows make with their throats where it sounds like they are garbling marbles.

#19

Posted by: Knockgoats | November 2, 2009 11:50 AM

Another fan of the Corvidae here. I particularly like ravens and rooks - the latter you don't get in the Americas, it's a highly social bird, which nests in large colonies ("rookeries") in groups of tall trees. A rookery in the breeding season makes a noise which is deafening at close quarters, but strangely soothing in the middle distance. A rook can only be distinguished as an individual from a carrion crow at fairly close quarters, by the patch of bare skin at the base of the beak, but there is an old English country saying:

"If you see a lot of crows together, they be rooks; and if you see a rook on its own, it be a crow!"

#20

Posted by: Moggie | November 2, 2009 12:05 PM

#12:

Yeah, it's murder!

Heh, I see what you did there!

But, speaking of murder...

I've seen a crow feeding pigeons in the local park. S/he's figured out that carrying food to a bunch of pigeons will get them to flock around, so s/he can more easily kill one (the rest of the pigeons appear surprisingly relaxed about this).

#21

Posted by: Ziksby | November 2, 2009 12:11 PM

I caught this family of crows fighting on a neighbour's lawn. Take a look they were quite vicious. This was a few days ago in the UK. http://www.flickr.com/photos/ziksby/4055394403/

#22

Posted by: Ol'Greg | November 2, 2009 12:26 PM

I wish we had more of them around here. I think I've only seen one or two in my life. Really beautiful birds. Lots of Grackles, but very very few Crows.

#23

Posted by: beth | November 2, 2009 12:49 PM

Ziksby - that crow fight is crazy! I've never seen them do that before. Thanks for sharing that video.

#24

Posted by: John Emerson | November 2, 2009 12:54 PM

I had a vole metazoan (field mouse) come into my house the other day. They have no fear of man, and this one was downright friendly. I would have let it stay if I lived alone.

#25

Posted by: Owlmirror | November 2, 2009 1:02 PM

I particularly like ravens and rooks - the latter you don't get in the Americas, it's a highly social bird, which nests in large colonies ("rookeries") in groups of tall trees.

Insightful problem solving and creative tool modification by captive nontool-using rooks (supplemental videos)

#26

Posted by: Joe | November 2, 2009 1:10 PM

Got crows and ravens here in southern Oregon. The ravens steal our ducks' eggs, and will eat undefended chicks, ducklings, and goslings. I fire off a shotgun at one (raven, that is!) now and then when the ravens pester our fowl too much. They are smart, stay away for weeks, then start testing the limits gradually.
There was a study at University of Washington that demonstrated cultural learning and teaching among crows about which individual humans were dangerous to crows. Bird-brains, indeed. Every critter is very smart about how to be that critter.

#27

Posted by: BG | November 2, 2009 1:15 PM

There was an interesting TED talk from the guy who made the vending machine for crows. If they dropped coins into it, it dropped out food pellets.

http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/joshua_klein_on_the_intelligence_of_crows.html

#28

Posted by: davem | November 2, 2009 1:50 PM

@Ziksby: Yes, I saw the same thing a few weeks ago. 4 crows were attacking a solitary crow and left it for dead. Even when it had rolled over and was upside down, they persisted with the attack.

Around here, buzzards and red kites are making a comeback after DDT wiped them out decades ago. The local crows give them hell. The poor buzzards just can't be left to thermal upwards in peace and quiet, without 1 or 2 crows mobbing them.

I've seen crows (or was it rooks?) queuing up to have fun soaring a small rock. Each one would take it in turn, flying in a 30mph wind at the top of the hill, eventually fall off with a cackling sound that sounded like laughter, then the next one tried it out. They were literally forming a queue at the side of the rock.

#29

Posted by: DagoRed | November 2, 2009 2:29 PM

I love crows. I have no idea why people dislike them so much. I can't help but being awed at them when they're in my backyard.

I have to wonder if you ever lived in an area where a sizable colony of crows moved in for a couple of days, claiming your home and the surrounding area as part of their current scavenging grounds? They turn over trash cans, no matter how well secured shut, they ravage gardens and compost heaps, they simply make a mess out of whatever they turn their attention to, and they are fairly aggressive in large numbers, terrorizing pets and children (and even some adults -- their damn big birds that sound like Nazgûl passing overhead when they fly close and low).

And I don't mean a couple in your backyard, I mean opening your front door at 6 AM and feeling like you just entered Hitchcock's, The Birds? Dozens of them lining the roof ridge, trees, fences, etc. -- who woke you with their deafening caterwauling, but who suddenly stop squawking simultaneously -- without flying away and, instead, simply turning their attention toward you -- when you emerge from your house to get the newspaper? CREEEEEEPY.

Their saving grace is that don't stick around very long. They descend upon your neighborhood or town, ravage it, then usually leave after a couple of days. But for those couple of days, they are unwelcome pests -- and that is why many people hate crows.

#30

Posted by: Rrr | November 2, 2009 3:11 PM

I think most species of the crow family are potentially very clever.

Magpies seem to have an instinct to flee whenever they see a flash of something white flapping, presumably because their wings are marked in white so it "means" one of their kind has found it wise to flee, and they follow suit. Without thinking, as it were. Now, after we usurped this trait to chase them off the feed we hang out for smaller, "nicer" birds, a few individuals appear to have seen through our bluff and ostentatiously look the other way in order to avoid this reflex behaviour and go after the food in spite of our efforts to scare them away. They can't always overcome the reflex, but it seems they have figured out a way to at least try, and use it determinedly.

Last spring we saw a single raven, probably a male, showing off with some really extraordinary aerial acrobatics, off the edge of a cliff, while emitting some very odd and varied sounds as if to attract attention. This went on for at least five minutes or so. Very impressive!

Crow-like birds are highly social animals and display high levels of intelligence. They don't always make a racket -- have you heard the variegated cooing from a magpies' nest in spring? It could easily inspire any composer. Most fascinating to watch, although there can sometimes be too many of them at one time and place for our liking.

And baby rooks make an excellent gourmet meal. Hey, it's one way to keep their number in check.

#31

Posted by: Hank Fox | November 2, 2009 3:23 PM

We're set to deliver the crow -- I call him PC, for Pedestrian Crow -- tomorrow morning to the veterinarian for a checkup, after which he'll go to the wildlife rehabilitator, in hopes his wing can be made sound again and he can be released back to his local family. They've told us that if he can't fly again, he'll end up fat and long-lived -- but captive -- as he helps educate kids about wildlife.

#32

Posted by: ButchKitties | November 2, 2009 5:23 PM

Crows used to set up shop in the trees above my high school's parking lot. If you got out of your car carrying food, or something the crows thought was food, they'd start shrieking and dive at you. I think it was because a good portion of people they dived at would drop whatever they were carrying to cover their heads and run. They were better at stealing your lunch than any human bully.

(After having been on the wrong end of a crow's cleverness, I can't say that I dislike them, but I do prefer to admire them from afar.)

#33

Posted by: Jeff Eyges | November 2, 2009 6:01 PM

Hank, can you tell us the crow's story?

#34

Posted by: squareone | November 2, 2009 6:09 PM

This summer in Grand Gulch (in Utah) my wife and I watched two ravens grooming each other on a cliff wall. The cooing sounds they made were very soothing and unlike any other sound I had ever heard from ravens.

#35

Posted by: 'Tis Himself | November 2, 2009 6:38 PM

Odin had a couple of ravens, named Huginn and Muninn, who traveled around Midgard spying for him.

#36

Posted by: eddyline | November 2, 2009 6:38 PM

I was walking in Vancouver in the mid-nineties when I spotted a pair of crows on the sidewalk in front of me. Growing up on a farm, I had learned their alarm call, which is a loud *click*, repeated a few times. I did this and they both jumped up into the air, one flying to the left and one to the right--into oncoming traffic, unfortunately. Was hit and killed.

The REALLY sad part of this(as if I couldn't have felt any worse for having been a part cause) was its comrade flew up onto the wires overhead, and started cawing straight down at its fallen partner.

I've been careful ever since with that call.

#37

Posted by: Hank Fox | November 2, 2009 6:43 PM

Jeff #33: "Hank, can you tell us the crow's story?"

Most of it's on the caption at my Flickr site, where you see the two pics:

"This is PC — Pedestrian Crow. We saw him walking around the yard about a week ago. Not flying, even when his family, "The Gang of Seven," did. Bum wing.

We did that "Let Nature take its course" thing for several days. But a couple of days ago, there he was happily in the midst of his family on the lawn, foraging around, when the rest of them spooked and flew off.

He watched them depart, then just stood there, sort of hunched up. I told the roomie about it, and next thing I know, we're out on the lawn chasing a madly hopping crow.

Caught him. Put him in a box. Called around to find rescue people. They're out there, and ready to take him, but we have him until Monday."

The other half of the story is that Carl Buell, the illustrator who did some of PZ's banner art, is also an expert bird rescuer himself, and is familiar with what they need to eat, etc. He doesn't have time to do rehab these days, but he knew there were people in the area who do.

PC (the crow) is in Carl's garage right now, well fed and probably bored, awaiting his date with the people we hope will fix his wing and get him back on his ... well, wings.

#38

Posted by: windy | November 2, 2009 8:41 PM

Man, these things are beautiful. Seeing a crow up close is like ... like looking through a hole in space to a world that's realer and more solid than anything in your own. They're really kind of stunning.
Having had the pleasurable privilege myself, many times, I can vouch for the veracity of Hank Fox's sentiments.

Your crows are kind of emo. It's harder to wax romantic about holes in space when they look like this. But very cool either way.

#39

Posted by: Caustic Gnostic | November 2, 2009 8:41 PM

I watched a group of crows attempt to emulate a seagull's soaring technique. It didn't quite work for them.

#40

Posted by: Jeanette Garcia | November 2, 2009 8:49 PM

Count me as a Crow lover. I love watching them. I love drawing them. I collect Crow folk art where I find it, including the metal crow at my front door that wears a scarf that changes with the seasons. Cheers to Carl Buell, primo illustrator and animal rescuer.

#41

Posted by: darvolution proponentsist | November 2, 2009 11:38 PM

Back near my hometown (in the northern midwest) the local nature center has had a crow on display since I was a kid. I think they switched names after Joe IV. More than one would immediately place the top of his head against the mesh screen if he saw a set of keys in your hand. They loved getting a good head scratch. The blue jays here have taken a huge hit as well as the crows. The county has a bulletin out asking you to contact them if you find a jay carcass so they can determine if it's West Nile related. I have seen a small comeback of the crows here, nothing for a few years and then a few small murders late last and early this year.

Shifting slightly off-topic but pertaining to nature... I just found the second Praying Mantis I've ever come across in the wild. This guy is another male and is happily munching on his second fat cricket in a two gallon goldfish bowl on my desk here. I'm going to fatten him for a day or so and release him although it is well beyond breeding season from what I've read.

The first cricket he grabbed he performed the typical chop-the-neck maneuver and dug right into the head. As he finished the head he ate it carefully down to the left eyeball. Much like saving your Marciano cherry in a ice cream sundae for last I'd imagine. Mmm Mmmm Good.

I was also amazed to find out that they can take down humming birds. It's well documented given the number of humming bird feeders out there. Wow. Sorry for the OT but I had to tell somebody.

#42

Posted by: woodsong | November 3, 2009 2:35 PM

BG:

That's a cool video! I've heard about the crows cracking nuts in traffic and bending wire hooks in the lab, but the vending machine's a new one for me. You could design machines to accept one type of lightweight litter and put a photograph of what a machine will accept on it. Crows are certainly smart enough to learn to identify objects from a picture! I'd certainly approve of setting those machines up to accept, say, plastic or metal bottle caps. Plastic rings, twisty ties....it would really be cool if a machine could accept plastic bags! Plastic bottles? Paper? There's plenty of possibilities. I'm not sure how technically difficult some of these would be.

Last winter there was a tremendous murder of crows that would gather at twilight in the trees near a golf course every night, before flying elsewhere for their overnight roost. Truly an impressive sight!

On the crow opportunism topic, I heard about a crow seen from a car one day. The bird was perched on a wire, watching the approaching car. When the car came near, the crow dove into the long grass and attacked a rabbit, spooking it out into the road where the car hit it. Dinnertime for the crow!

#43

Posted by: John Scanlon FCD | November 3, 2009 6:25 PM

Woodsong, love that idea. Enlist the scavengers to keep our shared habitat tidy!
But how long would it take them to find a more concentrated source of food tokens? Hijacking delivery trucks, that kind of thing.

#44

Posted by: Sili | November 4, 2009 10:16 AM

I think I must have been directed to ZooBorns before, but I haven't made it a regular stop.

My mistake:
http://www.zooborns.com/zooborns/2009/10/taronga-tests-tasmanian-tots-today.html

http://www.zooborns.com/zooborns/2009/10/tasmanian-devils-at-the-taronga-zoo.html

#45

Posted by: Chronos Tachyon | November 5, 2009 12:59 AM

YouTube has a few videos about a cat and a crow in Massachusetts that bonded when the abandoned kitten was adopted by the crow (complete with the crow feeding the kitten and keeping it away from traffic). See, for instance, this video or this one. Pretty amazing behavior for either of them.