Anything but Common: The Hidden Life of the American Crow

My grandparents are BIG bird people, like me and they feed the crows of our town. and every so often the crows will bring them things. like rocks or pinecones. I always thought it was so interesting, it's like the crow's way of saying thank you for feeding them.

Soon after I learned crows like peanuts, I threw a small handful into a clay pot hanging on a fence near our  bird feeders and our squirrel neighbors foraging everywhere they can find a morsel.  All this is hung over with November leafless tree branches.  So, I didn’t have much hope of a crow finding the peanuts before the squirrels ran off with them.  Not long after I threw out the peanuts, there was a crow pecking at and eating peanuts, hopping in and out of squirrels who were running in and taking them off.  The next day, I threw out a few more than I had the first day.  Two crows showed up and had a peanut snack.  Third day, three or four crows.  On the fourth day, there were 5 or 6 crows and they were cawing and cawing before I had come out of the house to throw them the peanuts!  I could see where this was going.  That was the last day I put out any peanuts.  They may have come back to check, but I haven’t seen any since the fourth day.  I may start again, but maybe further from the house!

I have been trying to make friends with the grey-necked crows in my neighborhood, by feeding them on a more regular basis.  The other day, I left out their favorite food and greeted them in a non-threatening way through an open window, hoping they would associate my voice with me and the food.  After awhile, one crow brought something in its beak and set it down before taking food and leaving.  It was a bone!  Which I understand is one of the types of items they "gift."  I can't be sure, but I'd like to think it is the first in a series of gifts. I have also witnessed a crow poking about and picking up a plastic food container at a trash can.  It was clear so the food could be seen.  The bird was puzzling over how to open it with a perseverance that I would definitely associate with intelligence ... but I was passing through and couldn't stop to observe. On another occasion, at an outdoor restaurant, I witnessed a very street-savvy crow swoop down to the next table and pull out a sugar packet, hold it upright between it's legs, peck it open and eat the sugar.  I felt the sugar itself wasn't the objective so much as getting my attention to maybe drop some fries, because -- and this is obviously subjective -- the behavior had a performative quality and once the crow had our amused attention, it didn't continue with the sugar packets.  And I did drop food, of course.

i have a group of crows that i regularly visit.  They have gotten to know me the last 3 years, and now recognize me no matter what i wear, and come flying and cawing from far away when i arrive. I think thats pretty clever. i feed them cashews, and sometimes one will fall between cracks on the rocky part of the beach.  Some of them just keep waiting for another, but once in a while they will carefully lift and remove several rocks to get to the cashew down below. sometimes, i will place a cashew under a shell or rock and walk away.  Although not all of them realize its there, some of them will carefully lift the rock or shell and claim their prize . a couple of  times, i spotted an eagle standing on the sand in the area where my beach crow friends usually hang out.  And while sometimes the group will sound the alarm, on two occasions i watched as a lone crow carefully approached the eagle. Pausing every so often. Until it was within inches, then the crow would nip and pull the eagle's tail feathers, causng it to flap its wings out a bit and look around. The crow would hop back, but only a foot or two, then would do it again. One of those times, the crow then simply started walking and foraging right near the eagle as though it wasnt there.  This seemed intelligent and playful to me, because the crow obviously recognized that the eagle was a lethal danger, but he sort of did a risk assessment based on the eagles responses and stayed in the area anyway.

I have a shepherd's hook that I use to feed blue jays.  The crows always seem to want to eat from the top of the shed.  They will eat peanuts on the ground in the winter when the shed roof is covered with snow.  Lately, they have been congregating around the shepherd's hook (the peanut wreath is right behind the baffle) and I know they are trying to figure out how to get peanuts out of there!

Last summer I fed crows oatcakes in our backyard...until they started fighting over the oatcakes. One of them had a bunch of his feathers pulled out. This summer, I was afraid to feed them because I didn't want the fighting to start again. A crow put on a little play in my front yard, however, and I was like OK, fine! First he got my attention, which was unusual because I always interact with them in the backyard. Then he flew over to the garbage cans (it was garbage day and they were out for pick up) and he found a cracker, which he brought over to show me. "This is what I want," he seemed to indicate. Then he went to the backyard to see if I understood. Which I did, so I went and threw him oatcakes in the backyard. This summer, I have avoided fighting by dividing the oatcakes into small pieces so everybody can have some.

When I was working I would commute by bus. It was not uncommon for a crow to be waiting for me in the afternoon when I disembarked. The crow would then follow me home; usually hopping down the street as I proceeded on the sidewalk. Of course, there was an objective for the crow; a treat once I arrived home. Crows are absolutely fascinating creatures and I thoroughly enjoy every interaction.

I don't have a personal creative crow story but I can't help but be reminded of Aesop's famous fable of The Crow and the Pitcher. So, it seems for hundreds of years, crows have been used as an example of intelligence and resourcefulness!

Once, we were birdwatching a Red-Tailed Hawk during Feederwatch last year and three crows flew by. One went right into some willow trees where many other birds nest, and, a couple seconds later, flew out with 15-30 other birds on his tail(almost litterally!). Then, the other two flew into the willows and one perched on the top, apparently on lookout. Then, after a short amount of time, they switched and then flew away. We think("we" as in me and my family) that they made a plan for it!

I didn't think I'd find myself feeding the neighborhood American Crow family here, especially after finding an online discussion forum in which people who'd set out to feed scrub jays reported crows chasing the scrub jays away from the feeding area. However, I found the small family of crows here to be teachable. The breeding male had been especially tenacious, over several months, about getting me to offer him peanuts. And I believe that his changing tactics, instead of trying the same thing over and over again is evidence of creative, intelligent behavior. At first, he tried positioning himself (hiding in a tree) to pounce down and take from the peanut pile I'd placed on the ground for the California Scrub-Jays. However, I'm in the habit of changing up where I put the peanuts, to keep things interesting, and this frustrated him. Then, he did try chasing the California Scrub Jays away from, and taking over, what he understood to be the "peanut feeding site." I couldn't reward the behavior so, in turn, I chased him with a very light spray of water from a hose (nothing aggressive because I'd like to take walks in my neighborhood without crows scolding and dive-bombing me!) and proceeded to feed the scrub jays in another part of the yard. Finally, he (sometimes accompanied by one or two others from his family) started making overtures to me. After getting a sense of my daily outdoor routine, at one point, he jumped down from the roof and spread his wings, making a "Foomf!" type of sound which resembled an umbrella or parachute opening, and then flew in an undulating figure-8 pattern just outside the fence and about eye-level to me. It was an impressive sight and gave me a sense of how large American Crows are compared to other songbirds. Then, at another point, when the California Scrub-Jay pair made their soft "kuk kuk" calls to me, the crows would fly closely overhead and give their rattle call. After that, how could I refuse? So here I am mostly maintaining two separate, socially-distanced peanut feeders for both parties (and trying to feed the crows responsibly in accordance to what I've heard about Northwestern Crow populations in the book In the Company of Crows and Ravens). However, at one point, when I had to hang the peanuts in one basket from a pole, a household member told me that she once observed the breeding male crow perched and waiting patiently for our scrub jay to pick out his peanuts and leave before flying over to the basket to get his own.

Where I use to live, I had a fox being taunted by all the crows.  I would always know the fox was in the area because the crows would be announcing his coming.  They did this to him all summer.  I feared the poor fox would not be able to find any food due to the crows warnings.  Fortunately, the next season the fox returned and was not being taunted. Also, when we were kids, there was a friendly neighborhood crow that was rescued by a family a street away.  For some reason, the crow took a liking to my little brother.  He would fly to our house and hop to the front door.  We would open the door and he would come in and stay awhile.  We would give him corn, pet him and when he was ready to leave, he went to the door again to be let out.  He came by regularly that summer.  We assumed he'd moved on or got a mate when he stopped coming.  It was great fun.

We like the book “ Arlo and Pips King of the Birds” which is a graphic comic book for kids about a crow and what he can do.

Well, this is a fictional observation: It has been observed that crows are killed by trucks 10x as often than by cars when the number of each vehicle is taken into account. Interesting. Crows often/usually have a lookout bird. We have never hear a crow call, "truck-truck", but we have heard a crow call, "caw-caw" which is crow talk for "car". Sorry for the joke if you were offended in some way.

I've been feeding crows peanuts - only when I see them! - for the past few months. There are five resident families in the local park. Each family has its own way of responding to me. The Flying Two get my attention by flying around me, though they won't eat close to me. If I have wandered off their territory, they fly around me again to get me to come back and one will land where he wants the nuts. The Fluffy Heads eat close to me and call for more nuts.They have fluffy heads... The Playground Pair watch me from on high and fly down very acrobatically. The female always takes her nuts away, but the male will eat them if I'm not TOO close. If they are on the ground, the male walks over to me. I am being very gender stereotypical here in assuming the male is braver - but he seems a little bigger. The Top Two are often on the ground with their adolescent, Cool Dude. She is the most fascinating crow of all. She seems to be in and out of her family. At first she was always with her parents, but always the bravest. Then she started going it alone. But she'd get dive-bombed by one of the Flying Two or told off by the Fluffy Heads if she was too close to their patch. If attacked from above, she rolls over and kicks with her feet. Then stands up and shakes out her feathers before eating more nuts. If it's the Fluffy Heads, she will come closer to me than they dare come or will go on the other side of me - she uses me to protect her from the other crows. One time, when the Flying Two attacked, her parents rocked up and chased them away. Cool Dude opens the nuts and buries them. When she's done, she asks for more. This is incredible as she is demanding them not because she wants to eat them, but in order to save them. Then there's the Feisty Gang - a family of five. They bicker with the Flying Two and the Fluffy Heads - stealing peanuts from everyone. But I don't see them as often. The young ones are quite brave. Finally, the Driveway Duo. These two wait for me when I am leaving the park and then make their presence known by perching in an obvious place. If I don't see them, they fly around me. One of them was on a lamppost in a heavy storm. I thought s/he was waiting for me but in fact she was staring upwards into the rain. I wondered if s/he was drinking, but the beak was closed. Maybe s/he just liked it? That day, s/he wasn't interested in the nuts. They amaze me - they certainly recognised me almost at once - after the first lot of peanuts. One thing, I always go with my dog. One day, I went alone - and that day, the crows were suspicious!

I’m in the habit of taking peanuts with me on my daily walk.  One day I passed a house where I frequently toss peanuts to a crow.  I was deep in thought and just walked on by.  Suddenly, a crow swooped by me, as close as I’ve ever had a crow fly by, looped around and perched back on his regularly tree.  Chastened, I backtracked and tossed him his peanuts.

I often wonder of crows have a sense of humour. When I was a child a long time ago, we had a neighbour lady who didn't appreciate the crow my sister rescued (she found it at the base of a tree alone; I know, mom and pop were probably nearby).  Our family had decided, once he could fly, he had to be free to join other crows if he chose but he could roost in the basement overnight, which he did for the remainder of his first summer. Blacky (such a creative name!) frequently stole things like shiny children's rings or Barbie shoes. He kept them in our eaves trough. One warm summer evening, the neighbours were all out in their yards chatting over the fences. Our neighbour lady was in her garden picking green beans into a basin she held. Our crow flew in from out of sight and,  in an instant, landed on her basin, stole a bean and was gone! The lady shrieked, and threw all beans and basin up in the air. The only one who wasn't laughing. Fast forward many years: We had a bird bath which several crows used to soak and tenderize dried up chicken and turkey scraps left out by well-meaning people or scavenged from the garbage. It became a problem so we had to take it down from time to time to wait for the crows to move on.

Crows that visit my feeding station often chase hawks away.  It's fun to see their courage and persistence.

While going to my car in the SUNY Albany parking lot, I observed a crow picking fries out of a McDonald's bag and then bringing them over to an opened packet of catsup for dipping!

I am an ornithologist at Hobart and William Smith Colleges.  I study songbird migration, but as the "resident" ornithologist, questions about birds or issues with local birds are routinely brought to my attention.  One summer many years ago, a young crow had fallen into a rather deep window-well of one of our science buildings.  It was vocalizing and so some students noticed it stuck there.  They found me and showed me the bird.  The bird could clearly not get the lift it needed to fly out of this window well - it was too steep for the bird to clear the top edge.  So I climbed in to rescue the bird.  The whole time I did, the fledgling made calls (likely distress calls) and adults in the trees above made what seemed to me like aggressive calls of concern (at least that what I like to think they meant).   I got the bird out and released it (but as a bird bander, I banded it first), and during banding it continued to make calls and the whole process was observed by the adults.   After that event, for many years, when I parked on campus near the science buildings, I would get vocally harassed by one or more crows.  They clearly remembered me from the day I saved one of their kind, but I don't think they were being thankful.  I think I was being scolded for touching their family member.   Unfortunately a few years later I learned that the bird I saved was killed (shot) during the winter in downtown Geneva - likely by someone who did not enjoy the roosting birds there.  For a few years though I could easily and personally relate to Marzluff's facial recognition research first hand!

I have been observing a family of crows that have come to our compost for about 30 years. Most likely there have been several generations of the same family. For several years I would throw out peanuts for them every morning and before long they were arriving in our yard before I could get the peanuts out. They would perch in the trees at the edge of the yard and watch me through the windows and call until I came out with peanuts or compost. There was one particular individual that developed a very curious routine when I was out in the yard. It would fly into the trees above me and begin to arch its neck and dip its head and  beak down in front of its chest repeatedly. While dipping its head it would make clicking noises with its beak and rattle calls followed by a cooing vocalization that sounded just like a mourning dove. This ritual was clearly aimed at me since it deliberately flew to branches above me and  there were none of its companions nearby. I figured it must be sucking up to me to garner more peanuts, so I gave more peanuts. It often would see me in the house through the picture window and fly at the window only to veer off over the roof at the last moment. This crow clearly knew me and was attempting to manipulate me. And was quite succssful.

We have a family of 4-5 crows who visit our yard regularly.  We've been feeding the local blue jays peanuts for just about 2 years now.  The crows started to get in on the action last year.  I was so excited when I saw them approach the peanut spot and take some.  Now, the crows have their own spot and I've seen them stack up the peanuts so they can take more.  They also do this with old Thanksgiving leftover turkey!  Late this past summer I saw them in our garden.  We grew corn and it was terrible so I left it out there for them.  They kept congregating in one spot in the garden.  I later realized they were gathering around a seedling tray that I had left out there and that had collected a ton of water in it.  They were dunking the corn in the water and eating it!  We have a bird bath and 3 of them were sitting on it, drinking.  A small Cooper's hawk flew to the bath and seemed to consider threatening them.  The hawk raised its wings and one of the crows did the same and the hawk flew away.  This past summer we had a HUGE dirt pile (it was over 6 feet) that was a collection of sod, dirt, etc.  The crows LOVED playing in that pile, they were rolling around on it, rolling down it, pecking at it.  I just loved watching them.  I'm convinced they know me.  I see now that I'm probably right! :-)

The only "creative crow" story I know is the one that was circulating on Facebook a while back in which a crow (named Maple) acts like a dog: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gc701wXxctw. I have also heard stories that crows collect shiny objects, but those seem to be the ones who are pets rather than ones living in the wild.

There is a semi-rural suburban road not far from our house, where I have seen twice in different years, crows dropping nuts onto the road. They would then swoop down to eat any nuts opened by cars rolling over them.

Just today I saw a take-out container, a paper tub with a plastic lid. It was upside-down and the bottom had been 3/4 pecked out to get at the inside – the bird had clearly figured out that it was easier than going through the plastic!

One day I left a plant pot tray out in the rain. A crow came along to drink the rainwater from the tray. I thought that was cool, so I didn’t remove the tray, so he would come back to drink. A few days later I found a pork sparerib bone stripped clean of the sinew left on the bone. I think the crow probably brought the bone to the tray, to soak the sinew in the water so it would be easier to get it off the bone. So clever.

Recently 2 crows have come to my outside deck to eat the seeds I have placed there for birds. I assume they are the same two. Sometimes they arrive when most of the seeds are gone. One now comes to my glass door and starts banging on it, occasionally jumping up and down as s(he) bangs. It is a very loud bang as if a hammer...quite scary the first time it occurred. The second one seems to be watching, on guard. I have never opened that door to put seeds out but I have sat near the door or passed behind it. I now understand that their bills are not sharp so I may not worry any more that they will crack the door glass!

There is a barred owl that lives in the woods down the street from my house, me and my mom often watch the owl, and imitate its call so it calls back. One day while me and my mom where following the owl, and noticed a bunch of  Crows following it around and doing what seemed to be a coordinated attack. We followed the crows into the woods, and eventually found them mobbing the owl, which i didn't get a picture of, because it flew away. In the evenings proceeding that night, it seems the crows where perched in various spots of the woods, keeping a lookout for the owl.

This past summer, I had observed a crow dipping food from its beak in a puddle of water at my road. Not sure why it was doing so but I checked him/her out for about 3-4 mins as it would dip, put it down, and redipped. It took off after spotting another crow come near.

My story could be of coincidence, or that my local crow family really does recognize my face, or is super creative. I normally put out food for my crows in my front yard, but as it was nesting season and so many eagles and hawks were flying around I decided to put the food in my backyard. My backyard is full of very old coniferous trees, so it kind of has a canopy feel when you are underneath their cover. I thought it would be a better place to put the food, because I figure it would be really risky of an eagle to land on the ground that close to my home. I knew though the crow family isn't used to this being their food location. They normally land on telephone lines in front of my house to wait for food or look at the landscape. I saw a couple land and went outside. From my backyard you can see a part of the telephone wire. So, I had the plate of food in my hand and I make tongue clicking sounds to get their attention. They turned to look and I started walking towards my tree canopy area while making the sounds. None followed, but I decided to try again. Turns out I had to do it about 3 times, walking the same path using the same vocalizations. Sure enough though, one decided to follow me. He flew off the front yard telephone lines onto my roof so he could see what I was up to. I went inside to peer out my window and see what the crow did. Of course, he went over to examine what I had put out, then alerted his family.

Many years ago I bumped into my mom at the grocery store.  We agreed to meet back at her house for tea.  When I left the grocery store I saw a number of crows perched on the parking lot lights.  I arrived at my mom's house first and when I got out of my car I saw crows flying in and landing in the trees in her yard.  My mom pulled into the driveway moments later.  My mom loved to informally study crows and fed them daily. Another story that showed creativity..I had thrown out some pasta in the yard and I guess it had hardened.  A crow picked some up and put it into the bird bath.  The crow sat there and pecked at it periodically, probably to see if it had softened enough to eat.  They are amazing.

We have a family of crows that I feed peanuts to and the also like the meal worms I feed to the robins.  They are feeding babies now!  They recognize me but are a bit Leary of my husband! If they aren’t out in the yard I whistle and they show up quickly.  I believe they have trained me, not the reverse.  When I am out feeding the birds, they seem to talk in a kind of gravely rumble.  Have five regulars and they are here year long.  When they show up and I am not out they carry on.  Neighbors don’t care for them much!

What I have  Observed , I throw out the left over corn bread or muffins and there is one crow we call him the stacker.He takes one piece at a time and stacks one on top the other the most I’ve seen him carry off is 4 pieces stacked together, if he drops One piece because they were off balance he will start over he’s very meticulous takes him a few minutes to get his pieces just right . Flys off till  about 6 PM and he’s back .        

We have been feeding scrub jays peanuts for years. The crows in our neighborhood (SF Bay Area) discovered this and began coming around when they saw  the jays come to get their peanuts. We never gave the crows peanuts and it was rare that they got any. The jays seemed to be able to hold their own against the crows. Recently several crows have discovered our bird bath. They spend a great deal of time in it. Also, I have found spent peanut shells in it, as maybe they are washing them first? I've also found long strands of grass in the bird bath.

We have two areas in our front yard where ant mounds have surfaced over the years. I've observed on several occasions when a crow stands on a mound and waits for the ants to crawl up on his feet or legs and eats them off of himself.  I guess it's easier to catch the ants when they are biting you than chasing them around.

My husband likes to put peanuts on our platform feeder, but it is too small for crows to land on, instead they are snatched up by the jays and a few intrepid tufted titmice.  When we throw some peanuts on the ground, the crows can see the activity of the jays or squirrels who are usually the first to spot them.  One or two crows give their call and triumphantly fly in to the dogwood tree and take possession of the peanut territory. Then other crows (I presume younger ones) will fly to the ground to partake of the feast.

They always know about what time I’m going to throw breakfast scraps out for them!

I also notice that they somehow know when I’m headed home (where I will always give them something to eat if I see them waiting in the Chinese elm) or if I’m headed away from home. Sometimes they follow behind me when I’m walking home and sometimes they go ahead of me and just wait in the tree. The younger ones seem to be more curious and like to follow me more and they get closer to me. I wonder if that’s because the older ones have figured me out and have satisfied their curiosity and know I’m going to feed them.

Sometimes when I throw peanuts up on the roof, the feral roosters in our neighborhood fly up and try to chase the crows away. The crows handle this by having one crow stand in front of the rooster and while the rooster chases him the other crows eat the peanuts. I think it’s brilliant.    

Three observations: 1. I saw a dead crow in my driveway ditch and planned to bury it on my return home. (I know it was dead because I could smell the stench and wonder why it died.) When I returned home in 15 mins., it had disappeared. A groundhog lives under part of my deck and that smell hit me at my front door. I'm inferring the groundhog ate the dead crow because the smell disappeared within a day. 2. I saw five crows chasing a running rodent (rat size but couldn't identify it) in a dry catchment basin. From this course, I'm guessing that was a family group. One crow kept stabbing it while it kept running and all the crows were flying/hopping to keep up with it. It appeared a second crow in the group began stabbing it as well when the first crow stopped. I couldn't see the final outcome. 3. In a section of Florida US highway 29 between Palmdale and LaBelle,  I see three crows that appear to eat road kill.  In several crow photos in this course, I've noticed an extension of the upper bill. It reminds me of the Loggerhead Shrike tomial tooth. I recall in the overview of All About Birds, this statement that crow bills can't pierce road kill.  How about the bird that attacked the hard plastic deli container of tabouli? Is it possible some crows that have that sharp extension on the upper bill could do so?  Or could certainly stab a rodent to death?

I’ve heard a lot of stories about crows doing this or that but I’m not sure I believe all of them. Sometimes I think it is the people being creative with their stories. Ha ha. I throw shelled peanuts for crows on my driveway sometimes. Sometimes when I leave my house in the morning 1 or 2 crows will sit on the wire over my driveway and caw. I always wonder if they are making sure I notice them so I’ll throw peanuts before I leave (which I do) or if they are alerting their family. “Hey, peanut lady is leaving her house, get over here and be ready when she leaves so that the grackles don’t get the peanuts first”. Ha ha. Surely, whatever they are communicating is probably simpler. I’m not sure if this strategy is creative or just smart. This question makes me realize that I need to spend more time observing a group of crows for longer periods of time and watch what they are doing and if I see something creative I’ll report back.