Joe

3. i have seen many crows in Ontario Canada, but not many ravens. went i was on a trip to Northern Alberta near a glacier there were ravens in the parking lot at the visitor centre. i was honestly surprised at how big they were.  significantly bigger than any crow I've seen. The Ravens, there were 3, were very smart and patient waiting for visitors to drop a piece of food or rummage through the garbage cans. Now that I am back in Ontario, i've noticed many more Ravens. their croaks are distinctive and much different than a crow's caw.

I have loved birds from a young age. My mother used to teach us about robins, cardinals and blue jays. I am happy to report that there are still many of them where I live. Birds are important to me because they are everywhere. They have influenced and attracted humans for centuries. We eat them (chicken, ducks, etc) and use their feathers and down. The Romans had Eagle’s on their war flags, falcons were used by the kings, the Bald Eagle is Official bird of the USA and a symbol of strength, focus, freedom and stealth. The Canada Goose and the Loon are enduring symbols of Canada, Blue Jays, Cardinals, Eagles  and others adorn our professional sports teams. Hundreds of companies worldwide use birds as the name or symbols for their companies. Birds have inspired humans to fly and be free. They have taught us lessons of flight and engineering. Birds are important to the human race and we should be doing everything we can to keep their numbers high and abundant.

I have a fairly big pond close to my house that has some marshy bits. It is surrounded by some coniferous and deciduous trees and close to some open fields. It has a variety of birds including red winged blackbirds, song sparrows, grackles, robins, tree swallows, goldfinches, a blue heron occasionally, mallards, Canadian geese and others. Down at the lake, about 15 minutes away there are a wide variety of birds, from swans, wood ducks, ibis, herons, gulls and other shore birds to yellow warblers, scarlet tanagers, blue jays, cardinals, bank swallows, mergansers, loons sapsuckers and woodpeckers. Birds are everywhere. Sometimes great varieties of birds are fairly close if you change the habitat a little.