It's currently the dead of winter. While this is generally a slow period for birds (and birders), it's a good time to check in on the species that are here and even thriving during the dreary dark month of February when seemingly everything else has fled for greener pastures. I speak, of course, of that ultra-intelligent group of birds know as corvids. Corvids include crows, ravens, magpies and jays, among others, and many of these are found in abundance in Western Washington throughout the year. They are fascinating birds, as I found out recently when I read two different books on the subject.
While many people dismiss crows as vermin, perhaps just one small step above pigeons, crows are actually admirable creatures. They are highly intelligent and incredibly resourceful, as Tony Marzluff explores in his book In the Company of Crows and Ravens. Marzluff, a University of Washington professor, conducted much of his research locally, even testing crows on the UW campus to see how fast they can learn new skills. Marzluff examines the complicated relationships between crows and humans
If you are interested in taking a deeper look at corvid behavior, you may want to pick up Bernd
Heinrich's The Mind of the Raven: Investigations and Adventures with Wolf-Birds. Like Marzluff, Heinrich explores the coexistence of man and ravens through a series of essays, but his writing style lends an almost memoir-like feeling to it. Through many of his experiments (Heinrich caught and kept a number of wild ravens for studying), the author became incredibly attached to his subjects and his deep knowledge of and relationships with the birds makes for surprisingly fascinating reading.You don't have to be a bird lover to pick these books up, and they may even make you think twice before cursing that crow for digging through your garbage. After all, your own behavior may have taught it to do so.
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