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When a crow dies, the other crows investigate the cause of death (2015)

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Re: When a crow dies, the other crows investigate the cause of death (2015)

#32
post #6

My dog has been on a killing spree this summer, sometimes catching 2 birds in a week :(. It's amazing how the birds react when she catches one. They all go nuts, and more fly in and start squawking. I worry they'll call in a hawk to carry her away lol.

Growing up, I had a cat who got attacked by a hawk. He came running in one day with deep talon scratches on his back.

My mom took him to the vet, who cleaned up the wounds and said that it was probably a juvenile who was overconfident in what he could grab. An adult wouldn't have tried.

The mental image of this teenager hawk swooping down, grabbing a fatass 15-pound cat, and struggling to pick it up while Mom looks down and shakes her head makes me smile.

Re: When a crow dies, the other crows investigate the cause of death (2015)

#33

If you find this interesting, you should really look into the intelligence of crows. They've been observed to remember human faces, wait on traffic lights, plan, and a whole bunch of things that are very impressive. And don't even get me started on _jackdaws_.

Corvids (crows, ravens, magpies, jackdaws) are pretty bright. Some of them also have quite a bit of voice control. Like parrots, they can speak human words if trained. https://youtu.be/rIX_6TBeph0

Crows definitely have good voice control. A local nature preserve and wildlife rehab center here has a couple of captive American crows (they can't be returned to the wild because of injuries). They mimic human voices very well. One of frequently says "American crow".

Re: When a crow dies, the other crows investigate the cause of death (2015)

#35

If you find this interesting, you should really look into the intelligence of crows. They've been observed to remember human faces, wait on traffic lights, plan, and a whole bunch of things that are very impressive. And don't even get me started on _jackdaws_.

They've even learned to pick up coins and use them in a vending machine in exchange for rewards: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1qSsVBPh9Lo

Re: When a crow dies, the other crows investigate the cause of death (2015)

#36
post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Theres a youtube clip of a crow solving a puzzle that little children struggle with - cant find it now as at work but dont think it would be hard to find for anyone interested

I guess you mean this: http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=AVaITA7eBZE

This is not nearly as complex a sequence, but has a bit of tool making. Specifically, bending a wire into a hook to retrieve food:

https://youtu.be/TtmLVP0HvDg

Re: When a crow dies, the other crows investigate the cause of death (2015)

#37
So fascinating!

There is a young girl in Seattle who made friends with the local crows by feeding them, they soon were bringing her regular gifts in exchange for her snacks - http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-31604026

I tried to do the same thing in my backyard for about three weeks until one day my wife caught me putting little pieces of bread on our porch railing. She asked what I was doing and I explained making friends with the crows (what else?!). She asked me to stop so I did.

My only hope is that they attack her now and not me, with some level of understanding that she was the one who ruined all the fun...

Re: When a crow dies, the other crows investigate the cause of death (2015)

#38

If you find this interesting, you should really look into the intelligence of crows. They've been observed to remember human faces, wait on traffic lights, plan, and a whole bunch of things that are very impressive. And don't even get me started on _jackdaws_.

They've even learned to pick up coins and use them in a vending machine in exchange for rewards: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1qSsVBPh9Lo

I even remember reading that they were trained to pick up trash in exchange for food.

Re: When a crow dies, the other crows investigate the cause of death (2015)

#39
I believe ravens and crows are very similar, this is a personal (long, and not the great) story about a raven I messed around with in Yosemite National Park:

When I was up on north dome (not to be confused with half dome) there was a group of raven's hanging out on the rocks watching us eat our late lunch. I had an apple core that I tossed to the side and watched as a raven warily tried to approach it. I walked over and grabbed the apple core before the raven could grab it so I could entertain myself teasing the raven for a bit before we started down the mountain. I started by putting my arm back ready to throw the apple and as I did that I noticed the raven kneel a bit as if getting ready to launch itself. I thought this was interesting as it showed it was anticipating me throwing the object based on my arm motion. As I relaxed my arm the bird also relaxed.

I tried grabbing a rock and again watched it brace itself to launch from the rock then tried switching the apple core and the rock behind my back and tossing the rock hoping the bird would dart after it thinking it was the core. The bird didn't do as I expected and instead just watched me carefully never motioning for the rocks.

I tore a piece of the apple from the core behind my back and tossed it just as I had with the rocks and before the piece of apple even left my hand the raven leaped from the rock in its direction.

This blew my mind. Not sure how the raven knew it was a chunk of apple and not a rock.

I messed around with that particular raven for a good 10-15 minutes tossing various things in its direction, testing its reactions and trying to mess with its little raven mind. All I managed to do however was be impressed at its level of experience in dealing with Yosemite tourists such as myself.

Re: When a crow dies, the other crows investigate the cause of death (2015)

#40
post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Corvids (crows, ravens, magpies, jackdaws) are pretty bright. Some of them also have quite a bit of voice control. Like parrots, they can speak human words if trained. https://youtu.be/rIX_6TBeph0

Is there any evidence this isn't fake?

The Australian lyrebird is perhaps the best bird mimic:

https://youtu.be/KOFy8QkNWWs

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