John

The Zygodactyl woodpecker foot, as opposed to the Anisodactyl foot of most other species of birds, is an amazing adaptation for clinging to trees. Since woodpeckers do not perch so much as they cling, this arrangement of toes helps them move better up and down on the trunk of the tree. Other species of tree habitat birds tend to move side to side when perched on a tree limb so they have to grasp with a hallux opposed to three toes.

When traveling in the southwest the Acorn Woodpecker is one of my favorite subjects for photography. I caught this one in the blink of an eye. (Boulevard, Calif.)

In the planned community where I live, in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina, we have many crows. We might be described as a managed environment for the bird community. The surrounding county is rural and there is no urban area close by so we have a managed/rural kind of environment. We have a permanent population of crows that I count on eBird almost daily. As this is a very well managed community of property owners, there isn't much opportunity for the crows to get into trash or find human food, yet they can be seen or heard all about the area.  There is a lake and open areas such as the golf course and recreational areas. The crows can be seen in these areas daily. So, my guess is that the crows are getting natural food or else they are flying to areas where non-natural food can be found. There are plenty of nesting opportunities in the many tall pines in the general area. People in the community rarely comment on or complain about the crows. People in the rural surrounding area my have problems with crows raiding their crops and gardens. Thus the "scarecrow" use in the rural areas.

I encounter groups of crows that I assume are a family primarily in two areas of the housing development where I live in the Blue Ridge Mountains. I think there are two families in 750 acres. I think of them as the north and the south families. Occasionally they meet near the middle and have a squawking and cawing good time (I may be anthropomorphizing about that).  Mostly I observe a smaller group of four or five near where I live flying through the trees or foraging on the ground. I can think of no other birds that I have observed that compare to the crows. The closest I can think of in this area would be the Canada geese. There is a breeding pair here every spring/summer. The main difference from crows is the breeding pair will not allow any other goose to come close to the juveniles to share in parenting. But then the juveniles are quickly up and about eating grass like the adults.

I would suppose that inbreeding could be a threat, although the percentage rates of incest and near related are rather high, how many generations has this been happening? If this has been the crow way for eons then maybe there is some sort of genetic advantage. Extra-pair fertilization possibly has some benefit for the health of a flock or family to offset any disadvantage that incest or near related that might occur.

Judging by the number of crows that can be seen or heard in the area where I live, one would think it is easier for crows to achieve breeding status. But, that may be a situation where it would be more difficult. If there is a large population present in an area, then the waiting list to find a mate would be long with competition of older birds waiting for breeding territory.  Males have more opportunity to inherit than females as females rely on replacements as breeding strategy. So, in heavily populated areas females would find it more difficult to breed than males, thus they would leave to find new or replacement territory. Males may find it easier to mate as there are more options for them to stay in a native territory.

3. I live in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina. Some of the tallest mountains in the Appalachian chain are here. We have ravens that inhabit the highest peaks, some more than 5,000 feet elevation. Both species can be seen or heard where I live at 3,600 feet elevation. The crows travel more in groups and the ravens are more solitary. I distinguish the difference between them more by calls or by overflight. The tail feathers are my best method for determining the overflight identification. Attached are a pair of images of ravens I have captured while birding.