“Caw, caw, caw” is a ringing call that many people would recognize by sound. Crows are large birds and very intelligent. Allaboutbirds mentions:
“Crows sometimes make and use tools. Examples include a captive crow using a cup to carry water over to a bowl of dry mash; shaping a piece of wood and then sticking it into a hole in a fence post in search of food; and breaking off pieces of pine cone to drop on tree climbers near a nest.”
Burgess captures a scene where a distressed Mr. and Mrs. Robin have come to their nest expecting to find their eggs, only to find the eggs have been broken and eaten by Blacky the Crow. Crows are omnivores and will eat almost anything. You may have been on a road trip in a secluded area and have seen them indulging in some carrion, which is the fancy term for roadkill. Did you know that they cannot break open the skin of an animal with their beak? They have to wait for another animal to break open the carcass and then they can eat some of it. Allaboutbirds adds that while you may see this sometimes, carrion is not a large part of a crow’s diet. Maybe you can find some information on other things they eat using your resources!
Here is another helpful thing because in the field it can be difficult to recognize whether you are seeing a Raven or an American Crow:
It is so interesting to learn a little bit more about birds, isn’t it?! Here is what we gathered from using Cornell Lab’s Allaboutbirds and our Burgess reading:
Until next time, keep birding! <3 Kate
