The Corvid Blog

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Ooookay, apparently Tumblr didn’t find it necessary to actually TELL me I have been receiving messages and questions. I AM SO SORRY! I have not been ignoring you! Simply unaware! I’ll be sure to reply as soon as I can C:

# oops

# corvidblog

# messages

# sorry

This is the video accompanying the article my university wrote about my adviser, Anne Clark, and our study population of crows. I’ve spent six years of my life working with these specific birds, and hours upon hours at the compost site in the film, haha.

Apparently ABC News picked up the story as well!

Also, I promise to explain exactly why it’s been so long since I updated. Next post though!

Enjoy!

ravendroppings:

Corvids Have Nasal Bristles PSA by ~SageKorppi

Mostly because I can, and also because it is a pet peeve of mine.

NO NOSTRILS!!!

Quote from: Madge, S. and Burn, H. 1999. Crows & Jays. Princeton University Press, New Jersey. [link]

Photo credits:

Black Currawong: JJ Harrison via Wikimedia Commons
Australian magpie: Aviceda via Wikimedia Commons

Blue Jay: DickDaniels via Wikimedia Commons
Green Jay: Alan Wilson via Wikimedia Commons
Eurasian Jay: Mark Medcalf via Wikimedia Commons
Clark’s Nutcracker: Jason Popesku via Wikimedia Commons
Black-Billed Magpie: David Merrett via Wikimedia Commons
Green Magpie: Thomas Ruedas via Wikimedia Commons
Rufous Treepie: Jon Connell via Wikimedia Commons
Pander’s Ground-Jay: Alastair Rae via Wikimedia Commons
Alpine Chough: Ken Billington via Wikimedia Commons

Common Raven: David Hofmann via Wikimedia Commons
American Crow: cuatrok77 hernandez via Wikimedia Commons
Jackdaw: Tony Hisgett via Wikimedia Commons
House Crow: J.M.Garg via Wikimedia Commons
Jungle Crow: aomorikuma via Wikimedia Commons
White-Billed Crow: Josep del Hoyo via The Internet Bird Collection
New Caledonian Crow: original author unknown via Google Search
Pied Crow: Lip Kee Yap via Wikimedia Commons
White-Necked Raven: Greg Hume via Wikimedia Commons
Thick-Billed Raven: original author unknown, via Wikimedia Commons
White-Necked Crow: ZankaM via Wikimedia Commons
Australian Raven: Brett Donald via Wikimedia Commons

Rook: Andreas Trepte
Grey Crow: Brian J. Coates via The Internet Bird Collection
Grey Crow: mehdhalaouate via The Internet Bird Collection

A post I made on my art journal, but never posted it here!

Oh no, a not-corvid! However, I thought I’d share what has been keeping me so busy. Meet Rusty, my red-tailed hawk (Buteo jamaicensis), beautifully photographed by my friend Melissa Penta.

My husband and I obtained our apprentice falconry licenses and Rusty here is our first bird. He’s a juvenile (hatched in the wild this April or May) and was trapped in January. He’s a small male and his personality has made him an absolute delight to work with. If you have any questions about falconry, feel free to ask, however, since this IS a corvid blog, I’m going to briefly talk about the relationship between these guys and corvids.

I’m sure if you have spent any time observing or reading about crows you know they exhibit mobbing behavior. This means they dive-bomb, peck, chase, and scream at predators they find threatening, even going after predators many times their own size. (I have certainly been mobbed during banding season!) What makes it “mobbing” behavior is that they recruit family, friends, and neighbors to help them drive the predator away, or anything perceived as a threat, no matter how seemingly benign. Smaller crows will even mob bigger crows. It’s not just the crows that do this, many corvids show this behavior such as magpies and jays (but seriously, what won’t jays scream at?), however, this post will focus on crows.

This behavior often looks quite dickish, as many times the target of the crows’ ire is simply sitting still in a tree or trying to eat a meal. However, raptors are quite a threat to crows. Even if one may seem too small to be a threat you need to keep in mind that raptors are quite powerful for their size (here is a video of a sparrowhawk on a jackdaw; please note this is a predator/prey interaction video and it may be distressing to sensitive viewers…though spoiler alert, the jackdaw survives). Even cousins aren’t sacred as ravens are often chased off as vigorously as a raptor because they can certainly be a threat (here is a juvenile raven eating a fledgling crow).

So, is it a mystery why crows might act so defensively to any predator/threat they see? Not really. I find anti-predator behaviors quite interesting. When mobbing occurs (note: this is also seen in other animal taxa, not limited to corvids or even birds) you don’t just see kin helping kin, you sometimes see entire communities of unrelated individuals banding together to make their neighborhoods safer. Sounds a lot like what we do!

So as I fly Rusty and hunt small game with him I fully expect to get some crow visitors who are none too pleased to have a hawk in their domain (in fact we’ve already had a few at a local park), but in the end, can we really blame them?

Happy 2013! Sorry for my long absence. The Holidays were quite busy for me. I hope the Holidays treated you all well!

I’d like to start this year with an adorable article about a Common raven at play. Corvids, the crows (Corvus) in particular, are well known for displaying play behavior. So, enjoy the article and the photos :)

(via I’ve just twigged this is fun! Raven lays back and enjoys playing with his new toy | Mail Online)

One of my western scrub jay (Aphelocoma californica) photos is being used on a friend’s totemism tumblr C: Check it out!

fuckyeahanimaltotems:

(Photo by J Campbell-Smith)

TOTEM ANIMAL - WESTERN SCRUB JAY (Delayed Gratification)

Keywords:

Unusual yet functional family units, scrub wisdom and connection to scrub spirits, theft and appropriation, urban wisdom, growth in urban areas, material wealth, saving something for later, delayed gratification, problem solving, creativity, adapting and learning, great intelligence.

General Description:

The Western Scrub-Jay (also known as the California Jay and Long-Tailed Jay) is a large songbird found in North America, with distinct blue, white and gray plumage. There are many subspecies of the Western scrub-jay, whose colourings all differ slightly. The Western scrub-jay is non-migratory, urbanised and easily tamed, and is a frequent visitor to bird feeders. It is noted for its bold habit and harsh, scratchy calls. The scrub-jay is generally monogamous, and the pair both help to create the nest and raise offspring. Family groups will be assisted by helper males and females who will not breed.

Western scrub-jays are omnivorous, forage in pairs, small flocks or in family groups in scrub; preferring juniper, oak and mesquite. They also feed on the parasites of mule deer. In areas where acorns are abundant, the scrub-jay’s beak becomes slightly hooked to assist them with accessing the acorns. Western scrub-jays are highly intelligent, like all corvids, and engage in caching (burying food for later), having excellent spatial memory. Jays that have previously stolen the caches of other birds will notice if they are being observed while caching, and will dig up their caches and rehide them to prevent theft. They - like some other corvids - are known for stealing and hoarding brightly coloured objects.

Lessons and Challenges:

All birds and animals that cache teach us the benefits of delayed gratification. In a world where most animals seek immediate gratification, eating ‘now,’ mating ‘now,’ to actually have the ability or foresight to cache food and save it up for use when it is necessary is an unusual but brilliant adaptation.

Delayed gratification enables us to save up resources and things that nourish us for later, it also allows us to keep working towards a future goal, even though we’re not getting much short-term gratification. It may involve slogging it through a difficult job to get a promotion, a harrowing university course to get the degree or diploma you’ve always wanted, or to simply see through the tough times with a partner or friend, because you trust the gratification will come in the future. Those looking to find strength to see through the hard times could do well to look towards scrub jay.

Western scrub jays are known for their ‘unusual’ family units, where a monogamous pair is assisted by offspring who rarely mate, and instead feed their parent’s offspring. This works for them, and has lead the scrub jay to be a very successful breeder and have high populations in different areas. Scrub jay teaches us that we don’t need to have a ‘normal’ or ‘mainstream’ family unit in order to be successful (although we need some kind of family unit!) It may be that our ‘family’ consists of friends, extended family members, or even professionals like doctors, therapists or spiritual healers. What is important is not how conventional the family unit looks from the outside, but how successful it is within.

All scrub jays have a connection to scrub wisdom and a connection to scrub spirits as they are able to live within the scrub very successfully, and exploit a range of landscapes, plants and animals for their survival. For those wishing to contact or work with scrub land spirits or plant spirits, the scrub jay can be an animal intermediary to assist with this.

The scrub jay can teach us about the positives and negatives of theft and appropriation. Many members of the Western scrub jay species will actually go out of their way to witness other jays burying/caching their food, so that they may steal or appropriate someone else’s catch. They teach us that sometimes it actually is healthy or appropriate to ‘take’ nourishment from others in order to nourish the self. This is particularly true of most creative types (writers, artists, etc.) who can never truly be ‘original,’ whether they are aware of it or not, some level of appropriation occurs. Scrub jay teaches us that this sort of theft has many layers of meaning, some positive, and some not so positive (especially depending on the nature of the theft). All orientations towards theft and its impact on others, can be addressed by Western scrub jay.

Any animal that has adapted so well to urban areas, teaches urban wisdom. Many people can often put down the suburbs as places that aren’t that nourishing, but if this were true, so many animals would not be moving into our urban areas to exploit them for their own nourishment.

Any animal who experiences a population explosion in an urban environment, also teaches about how to grow in urban areas. Scrub jay suggests that you don’t need to go that far out into ‘nature’ (or a concept of a pristine nature) in order to experience a vibrant, positive and spiritual connection to the spirits, land, nature, people around you.

Scrub jay’s ability to save or store food for later suggests an element of abundance in their resources. Scrub jay can teach us how to find and accept material wealth in our lives, and how to sustain that wealth for ourselves by storing some away for later. This might come in the form of ‘caching’ our own money into investments.

All corvids teach about problem-solving. The ability to problem-solve effectively is considered one of the most advanced forms of thought that the more creative and intelligent of creatures possess; cetaceans, corvids and humans among others. The ability to find solutions when none present themselves obviously requires lateral thinking, creativity and a willingness to be innovative and pioneering. Scrub jay teaches and fosters this ability as a totem, its presence in your life suggests that the ability to problem-solve is strong in you at this time. It also includes the ability to problem-solve on behalf of others.

All corvids teach about adapting, learning, and passing on those adaptations and learnings to others. Scrub jay points out that you have a lot that is of value to teach others, though it may be in niche subjects. Emphasis is on teaching others casually, through the willingness to impart personal knowledge and facilitate the adaptation and growth of others. It’s not about price or material gain (though all corvids can help you to find a way to materially enrich yourself if need be), but the community and group growth that can occur through the sharing of knowledge.

The Shadow Aspects:

Those who dislike or fear scrub jay, may find that they have problems with the concept of theft and appropriation. It may be that they disdain art or writing as being ‘un-original’ when they can discern sources or possible influences. It might be that they constantly struggle to create something truly original and deny their own influences. It could be that they take too much, or too freely from others without giving thanks or acknowledging those they are influenced by.

Scrub jay as a shadow totem can also indicate people who always want everything ‘now,’ and therefore rarely save for later, or plan for later. Scrub jay as a shadow totem confronts people to look at their saving and planning habits, if they have any at all; and encourage them to begin cultivating an appreciation for delayed gratification.

Communion:

Like all animal helpers, this animal will only appear when right and appropriate, and cannot be forced to visit you, commune with you, or share messages with you. Scrub jay energy is more easily accessed in scrublands, or in urban areas. For those who are lucky enough to live with jays in their neighbourhood, jay may even come into your life by literally visiting you physically on a regular basis. For those who don’t have scrub jay nearby, consider invoking scrub jay energy via meditations on the nature of scrub or scrubland. Scrub jay is a less accessible totem than some of the more popular corvid totems like raven or even crow, however, like all corvids, scrub jay will be quite vocal and can become a thought-provoking and loyal guide if you let him/her.

↵ Reblogged from

# Aphelocoma californica

Tail Pulling

Crows (meaning Corvus, not just the crows with the common name “crow”) pull tails. It’s like they can’t help themselves. If there is a tail, it must be pulled:

Magpies in the genus Pica (the holarctic magpies) do this behavior as well, which is impressive, considering how much smaller they are. One advantage they have is a small size that lets them get off the ground and away from their target a lot quicker.

And apparently all tails are fair game, I guess there is truly “no honor among thieves”:

Usually when you see this behavior it’s in the context of food. A crow or magpie will pull another animal’s tail in order to distract it from it’s food and steal it (this sometimes occurs alone or in teams). Here’s a video of a raven stealing a bald eagle’s food. This behavior is so common it’s noted in many scientific papers, with a nice summary from Lawrence Kilham in his 1989 book The American Crow and the Common Raven, page 34-35:

“Tail pulling is a habit common to a number of corvids (Goodwin 1976). The crow that robbed the otter by pulling its tail could have done so by happenstance or as a deliberate piece of strategy. It is hard to know. The crows had pulled the otters’ tails many times before, to no seeming purpose except an urge, shared by Black-Billed Magpies (Lorenz 1970) and Common Ravens, to provoke animals larger than themselves, whether there is any immediate advantage to doing so or not. Bent (1946) reported three Common Ravens robbing a dog of a bone, one bird pulling the dog’s tail while others stood by its head. It is conceivable that crows, like ravens, are capable after trial and error of seizing upon the right movement for pulling a tail to advantage. Another use of tail pulling can be to get a larger bird or mammal to move from a carcass, as I describe later for Common Ravens contending with Turkey Vultures and as Hewson (1981) did for Hooded Crows contending with a Buzzard. Goodwin (1976) described crows and magpies pulling the tails of mobbing predators.

The behavior appears to be innate, for one of my hand-raised crows pulled a sheep’s tail and a hand-raised raven a cat’s tail when they were less than three months of age.”

But honestly? I think they just do it for fun, or simply can’t help their natural inclination for causing trouble ;)

Because clearly some animals just deserve it (read: squirrels are annoying and their tails are irresistibly fluffy). Cats are also fun targets. Sparrow-hawks too. (And even if the tail is hard to find, they will seek it out.) … …and Foxes.

Just another reason to love corvids ;)

fairy-wren:

black-billed magpie

(photo by ron dudley)

So beautiful I had to reblog!

↵ Reblogged from fairy-wren

# black-billed magpie

A lovely photo by Vijayarajan Annamalai. This is a bird most people don’t immediately think “corvid” when they see, but treepies are, in fact, corvids! That’s really all I’m going to say about this and leave you with the photo’s caption which is very informative:

“The Rufous Treepie (Dendrocitta vagabunda) is a treepie, native to the Indian Subcontinent and adjoining parts of Southeast Asia. It is a member of the Corvidae (crow) family. It is long tailed and has loud musical calls making it very conspicuous. It is found commonly in open scrub, agricultural areas, forests as well as urban gardens. Like other corvids it is very adaptable, omnivorous and opportunistic in feeding.

Shot @ Ranthambhore Tiger Reserve, INDIA November 2012.”

# Dendrocitta vagabunda

# bird

# India

# Asia

Somehow I am up to 106 followers! Thank you so much everyone! It’s nice to have people interested in my favorite birds! I’ll try to update more often!

THANK YOU!!!!