Mankind has never had a love affair with crows. These large black birds are intelligent, wary and familiar to nearly every Arkansan. But because they are fond of corn and other farm crops, and occasionally eat the eggs of songbirds and gamebirds, crows have been shot, poisoned and even bombed in a decades-long campaign aimed at controlling them.
Despite their bad reputation, though, crows are among The Natural State’s most fascinating birds, a fact even the most ardent crow hater would be likely to admit. Consider, for instance, this excerpt from The Audubon Society Encyclopedia of North American Birds: “Experiments with captive American crows showed that they can count up to three or four, are keen, wary birds, good at solving puzzles and at performing astonishing feats of memory, and quickly learn to associate various noises and symbols with food, … and it has been known to naturalists for years that they have a language of their own.”
I recall once reading an article in a science magazine that ranked crows among the 10 most intelligent animals, a fact that may account for crows’ ability to prosper in the world of man, their most dangerous enemy.
Arkansas’ two crows
Two species of crows inhabit Arkansas year-round. The American crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos) is a large bird with a stout black bill, black legs, squared tail and all-black plumage with a slight purplish or greenish gloss. Adults are 17 to 21 inches long, with a wingspread of 33 to 40 inches.
The fish crow (Corvus ossifragus) is all black like the American crow but slightly smaller. Size is deceptive in the field, however, and these two look-alikes are best distinguished by their voices. The Audubon Society Master Guide to Birding describes the American crow’s call as “a distinctive ‘caw’ or ‘cah,’ given singly or in a series,” adding that “young birds often sound more nasal like [the] fish crow.” The fish crow’s call is described as “a two-toned, nasal ‘ca-hah,’ the second part lower and weaker, also a short, nasal ‘ca’ or ‘car,’ usually repeated three to seven times.” The sexes of both species look alike.
Distribution and habitat
American crows occur throughout most of the continental U.S. They live in a variety of habitats, including farmlands, woodlands and even urban areas, but seem especially fond of large open farm-country fields.
Observations from the early 1900s indicate that crows weren’t abundant in Arkansas at that time. As farmlands spread, however, crow numbers increased as the birds capitalized on the abundance of new habitat. Few birds have been as successful at filling the niches created by modern farming practices.
American crows are common year-round residents in all Arkansas counties. They are usually seen in small groups in spring and summer, but form flocks of 25 to 50 or more in autumn and winter. In some states, roosts containing up to 500,000 American crows have been reported. One of the largest concentrations of crows seen in Arkansas was a roost on Lake Millwood occupied by 25,000 birds.
Fish crows favor coastal marshes, beaches, swamps, rivers, lakes and other wetland habitats. In Arkansas, fish crows are usually seen near major rivers, especially in the lowlands and the Arkansas River Valley, where they live year-round. Though common in some localized areas in Arkansas, sometimes forming flocks of 50 or more birds, they are, overall, much less common here than American crows.
Habits
American crows live an omnivorous lifestyle, eating everything from spiders, snails, snakes, eggs and worms to grain crops, fruit and small mammals. I once frightened a crow from the carcass of a freshly killed mole. Mussels may be carried high in the air, then dropped on rocks to crack them open so the birds can eat the contents. American crows also haunt highways and dumps, feeding on roadkill and trash. The birds love to scavenge.
Fish crows forage along waterways, eating crayfish, turtle eggs, fruit and dead fish, hence their name. Wading-bird rookeries often have attendant fish crows ever ready to plunder nests for eggs. Fish crows also reportedly eat ticks off the backs of cattle and catch minnows with their feet.
Crows are noisy, aggressive birds and are often seen in raucous groups mobbing natural enemies such as hawks and owls. Crows’ voices are quite versatile, and there are many variations of their common notes. One study describes 23 calls of crows and the calls’ meanings. Young birds adapt well as pets and can learn to mimic the human voice. However, the myth that splitting the tongue allows a crow to talk better is a cruel hoax.
Nesting time
American crows nest in Arkansas during March and April. Three to nine greenish eggs blotched with brown are laid in a branch-and-twig nest in a tree or shrub, usually 15 to 75 feet high. The eggs hatch after 18 days, and young birds first fly when 28 to 35 days old.
Fish crows usually nest in small colonies but in separate trees. Four to five greenish, brown-spotted eggs are laid in a nest built high in a tree, often near a swamp or riverbank. Incubation lasts 16 to 18 days, and nestlings fly after 21 days or more. There are only a few nest records in Arkansas, most in May or June.
Crows may live 20 years or more in captivity and up to 14 years in the wild.
Good bird, bad bird
Crows are beneficial consumers of grasshoppers, cutworms and other harmful insects. They are also important scavengers, helping clean up roadkill, dead fish and other carrion.
Unfortunately, crows are also destructive to crops such as pecans and corn. And because they often eat eggs and nestlings, in areas where crows are especially numerous, they may seriously impact populations of gamebirds, songbirds and wading birds, making it necessary to control crow numbers. Crow bounties were in effect in some states as late 1961. School boys were offered 5 cents for each pair of crow legs given to the teacher overseeing the local program.
Despite widespread eradication programs, though, the amazingly adaptable crow continues to flourish across America. Hunting crows
offers a means of control and a first-rate challenge for sportsmen, but few hunters bother to actively pursue the birds.
Crows are extremely wary, but the knowledgeable hunter can attract them close enough for a shot using a crow distress call and a dummy owl placed on a post or tree. In Arkansas, the crow season runs through the end of February, with hunting allowed Thursday through Monday only, and no bag limit. Should you try hunting crows, be sure to check current regulations at www.agfc.com before hunting.
Despite their roguish reputation, crows are interesting and valuable birds. The next time you see one, remember there’s a lot more going on in that bird brain than many people would imagine.