Community Chat

[NoelSeven]

On 3/22/2015 dooBdoo said:

There's an excellent PBS Documentary, "A Murder of Crows." ("Murder" means a "flock" of crows. I didn't want anyone to think I was recommending a shocking film.)

It's wonderful! They can remember and recognize human faces, make tools and use them, do complex problem-solving, and so much more I never realized.

You can see the complete hour-long video here:

"Although cultures around the world may regard the crow as a scavenger, bad omen, or nuisance, this bad reputation might overshadow what could be regarded as the crow's most striking characteristic - its intelligence. New research indicates that crows are among the brightest animals in the world. A Murder of Crows brings you these so-called feathered apes, as you have never seen them before."

http://video.pbs.org/video/1621910826/

That comes up here on the news every so often after mating season for the crows when they are protective of their eggs and babies. They swoop down and go after people's hair to drive them away. It is said they recognize people from the neighborhood and dislike certain ones they really go after.

Most people laugh it off.

[SuiGeneris]

On 3/22/2015 dooBdoo said:

There's an excellent PBS Documentary, "A Murder of Crows." ("Murder" means a "flock" of crows. I didn't want anyone to think I was recommending a shocking film.)

It's wonderful! They can remember and recognize human faces, make tools and use them, do complex problem-solving, and so much more I never realized.

You can see the complete hour-long video here:

"Although cultures around the world may regard the crow as a scavenger, bad omen, or nuisance, this bad reputation might overshadow what could be regarded as the crow's most striking characteristic - its intelligence. New research indicates that crows are among the brightest animals in the world. A Murder of Crows brings you these so-called feathered apes, as you have never seen them before."

http://video.pbs.org/video/1621910826/

Since I watch almost everything PBS offers (NOVA, Nature, Independent Lens, Frontline, Masterpiece [all of them: classic, contemporary, mystery, Downtown Abbey, etc.]), I have seen "A Murder of Crows" a couple of times.

A crow's memory is amazing! I particularly enjoyed the part about the researchers wearing the masks, to discover whether the crows would remember people who treated them badly. Of course they did, and they even taught their offspring to dislike those same people.

I also enjoyed watching them use "tools," which is the hallmark of superior intelligence. It was thought that only primates had developed the capacity to use tools, but the researchers found that crows were equally proficient in their use of tools. They are fascinating creatures.

[I may be combining ideas from two different shows I've watched about crows, since there was a portion of a Nature show that dealt with crows.]

[dooBdoo]

Noel and SuiGeneris, It's compelling, isn't it? They also appear to gather at "funerals" to mourn their losses. I'm a huge fan of PBS, too, as well as the History Channel, NatGeo, and anything else in that genre. So I mix up what I've seen in various films. Another one I enjoyed and saw several times: "The Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill." The more I learn, the more I realize how little I know!

[NoelSeven]

On 3/22/2015 dooBdoo said:

Noel and SuiGeneris, It's compelling, isn't it? They also appear to gather at "funerals" to mourn their losses. I'm a huge fan of PBS, too, as well as the History Channel, NatGeo, and anything else in that genre. So I mix up what I've seen in various films. Another one I enjoyed and saw several times: "The Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill." The more I learn, the more I realize how little I know!

SF loves its birds, especially the wild parrots! Last year, DD noticed four of them on a bush next to our walkway. Gorgeous! She took numerous photos of them as they ate and watched her. She was just a couple of feet away. After at least ten minutes of eating delicate berries, they flew off together.

[blackhole99]

We live in the woods and always have had all kinds of birds and animals come fairly close to the house, but the crows would never come close. Recently, they have taken up residence in our pine trees about 50 ft. from our house. The crows have built a nest and are mating, guess we'll see their babies sometime this summer.

[sylviahomeatlast]

Sort of nonsense:

Crows Thieving Nests

They're waiting

for mating

'til wrens tend

batches of hatchlings.

[insomniac]

We get large crows here at certain times of the year. They eventually move on.

[sylviahomeatlast]

...deliberate pelicans loaf on the jetties

gulls gossip at water's edge

rowdy crows rally their gang at pinetops

two blocks inland, finches build cradles of grass and thread

jh

[LilacTree]

I just realized I thought they had orange beaks because the people here are feeding them with what looks like cheese or cheese crackers. Actually they have black beaks, so I'm back to thinking they are crows.

[adelle38]

On 3/24/2015 Ford1224 said:

I just realized I thought they had orange beaks because the people here are feeding them with what looks like cheese or cheese crackers. Actually they have black beaks, so I'm back to thinking they are crows.

Cheeto beaks?