Over the 10 years I volunteered in the Avian Nursery of the Wildlife Rehab Center, I came to hold crows in high respect. They - and their relations, the jays - are very smart, and amazing to watch. The volunteers were always cautioned to not talk around the birds because crows can try to mimic language.
After I had worked a few years with crows - - and consequently spent more time noticing them in the wild - - I stopped one day while walking my dog and watched a crow fly between a tree branch about 15-20' high and the sidewalk. On the sidewalk was a hurt baby squirrel (I don't know how it got hurt or how the crow "found" it.). The crow picked up the baby from the sidewalk, flew up to the branch and dropped the squirrel, over and over again - - as if he was trying to kill it or at least stop his meal from squirming. Fascinating! I wish that had been in the days of call phone cameras! Jeanne St. Paul ----- Original Message ----- From: "Steve Weston" <[email protected]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Friday, January 29, 2010 9:57 AM Subject: [mou-net] Birding about the Metro Yesterday I spotted a Crow carrying a recently killed Deer or White-footed Mouse. This is the first time I have every seen evidence of Crows hunting mammals. Steve Weston on Quiggley Lake in Eagan, MN [email protected] ---- Join or Leave mou-net:http://lists.umn.edu/cgi-bin/wa?SUBED1=mou-net Archives:http://lists.umn.edu/archives/mou-net.html --- Get FREE High Speed Internet from USFamily.Net! -- http://www.usfamily.net/mkt-freepromo.html --- ---- Join or Leave mou-net:http://lists.umn.edu/cgi-bin/wa?SUBED1=mou-net Archives:http://lists.umn.edu/archives/mou-net.html
