The Amazing Crow: Can They Remember Human Faces? | Scienceray

Crows are amazingly intelligent. They are problem solvers, survivors, cunning, and can hold a grudge if you do them wrong.


Crows are a part of myths and legends in many cultures. They belong to a family of birds which also includes jays, ravens and magpies — the family Corvidae. You can find them everywhere, except in the polar regions. Their loud and rambunctious caws and their black feathers have made many people fear them throughout history, often associating them with death. Farmers consider crows pests that damage crops by eating their seedlings.

American crow; source
Social Environment

Adult crows live for about 10-12 years and they mate for life. Crows use at least 250 different calls. The distress call brings other crows to their aid. They can mimic noises made by other birds and animals. There are documented cases of crows assisting wounded members of their flock by distracting predators.

Crows live with family during spring and summer, but join large aggregations in fall and winter.


Roosting behavior

Crows roost in the thousands to protect themselves from predators like red-tailed hawks, horned-owls, and raccoons. 

Roosts as large as 200,000 or more birds have been reported.

Crows roost primarily in winter, not in the breeding season.

An hour or more before dusk, birds will begin to fly towards the roost, collecting together into ever larger flocks as they get nearer. Before heading to roost, crows will congregate in some area away from the final roosting site. Here the crows spend a lot of time calling, chasing, and fighting. Researchers suggest that the crows probably share information about food sources.

After all the socializations, they move toward the final roosting spot, and after the night rest, they disperse at dawn.


Crows and Their Intelligence

They thrive wherever people live and have used their great intelligence to adapt again and again to a constantly changing world.





Source:

The Amazing Crow: Can They Remember Human Faces? | Scienceray

http://scienceray.com/biology/the-amazing-crow-can-they-remember-human-faces/