Crow is a bird widely depicted in culture, literature and mythology. The Roman poet Ovid called her the harbinger of rain. In Denmark, these birds are considered a manifestation of evil spirits, but the Swedes believe that the souls of deceased people inhabit them. In this article you will find a lot of interesting facts about crows birds, their intelligence, behavior and “language”.
Raven, crow, ravens … We understand the terminology
Before you share with you the most interesting facts about crows, you should understand the relevant terms and names. Indeed, not everyone knows how a raven differs from a raven, or what is the difference between ravens and ravens. So, let's begin…
Crow is a common unscientific name for several species of birds. Crows (emphasis on the first syllable) is a feathered genus that combines about four dozen different species. One of them is an ordinary raven, which will be discussed in our article. Finally, the word raven (or corvidae) means a family that includes, in addition to the genus of ravens, also magpies, jays, pine nuts and some other birds (in total over 120 species).
Well, it seems that we figured it out. Next, we have selected for you a list of the most interesting facts about crows. In addition, in the article you will find descriptions of the most famous bird species from the raven genus. Well, read?
Interesting facts about ravens
Young preschool children have one curious feature: playing in the sandbox, they often pick up a toy or a shovel and lift it above their heads. This is done in order to attract the attention of adults. Crows also use this technique in order to attract the attention of individuals of the opposite sex. To do this, they take a twig in their beak and show it to someone whose attention they want to take hold of.
Forming the ratings of the most intelligent animals, a person includes in the first five, along with his beloved, a chimpanzee, a horse, a dolphin and … a crow. By the way, the ratio of brain and body sizes in this bird is exactly the same as in humans. Many representatives of Homo sapiens are perplexed by this interesting fact about crows, and some are completely frightening. The raven’s brain is five times larger than the pigeon’s, which allows them to invent the most ingenious ways and means of obtaining food.
So, the inhabitants of the Japanese capital observed an amazing picture. City crows on a busy street patiently waited for the red light for cars to light up. At that moment, they quickly laid out walnuts on the roadway and returned to the lawn adjacent to the road. When a series of cars passed, savage birds took already chopped nuts from the asphalt.
An interesting experiment was conducted by scientists at the University of Oxford. The local task Betty was given the following task: to get a treat from a transparent and very narrow pipe. Pieces of wire of different lengths were laid out nearby. After a little thought, the bird chose the longest piece of wire, made a hook at its end with the help of a beak, and easily took food out of the pipe. And this is perhaps the most incredible and most interesting fact about ravens! For children under three years of age, by the way, they conducted a similar experiment. And few human cubs could think of such a thing.
Many of you must have seen a crow in a park gently extract food from a bag or bag. She can also open a matchbox with her paw or unwrap candy from a wrapper. What else are these birds capable of? Even more interesting facts about crows are found later in our article.
10 amazing raven facts
- The range of these birds covers almost the entire globe, with the exception of only Antarctica.
- Ravens, as a rule, create one pair for their whole life.
- In the wild, these birds live up to 10-15 years, and in captivity, when favorable conditions are created, they can live up to 30 years.
- But the Arabs are sure that the raven is an immortal bird at all.
- Crows are able to imitate humans and other animals.
- To build their nests, crows often use wire, hangers and other metal objects.
- Some species from this family are threatened with extinction (the most striking example is the Hawaiian crow).
- These birds are omnivores. They can eat fruits, nuts, frogs, the remains of dead animals.
- Crows are able to remember human faces.
- Crows love to pack. Sometimes their numbers can be measured in thousands of birds.
Exceptional mind
As mentioned above, crows have exceptional ingenuity. So, scientists at Auckland University found that these birds can use a mirror for their practical purposes. With the help of reflection, they easily found a hidden delicacy. According to the researcher Felipe Rodriguez, crows are able to analyze information along with elephants or primates.
Crow - one of the few birds that uses improvised items for food. For example, with hooked branches they extract larvae from the bark of trees, and with fork-shaped grasses they string gapeous insects and worms.
Phenomenal memory
Before throwing a stone at a flock of these birds in your yard, think twice. After all, crows also have excellent memory. They are able to remember the faces of those people who threaten them. This feature was checked during the experiment by Professor John Marzlaff. Moreover, as it turned out, crows also transmit information about their offenders to other birds. There is a known case when feathered avengers attacked a group of policemen in the state of Washington, who had previously shot birds in another state.
Crow's rituals
During observations of these birds, one interesting fact was established: the gray crows arrange a funeral! Having discovered the dead body of their feathered congener, they scream piercingly for several minutes, and then silently sit on nearby branches. Scientists are trying to find an explanation for this amazing phenomenon.
Here's another curious ritual: crows often ride an ant hill to launch as many ants into their feathers as possible. Why they do this is unknown. There are several suggestions. Perhaps formic acid, secreted from the bites of these insects, has a beneficial effect on the skin of the raven.
Games and Fun
Crows know how to have fun, like domestic cats or puppies. Many cases have been recorded when these birds came down from slides or snow-covered roofs. One Muscovite for a long time watched as two ravens with great excitement drove a tennis ball on the roof. They "passed" it to each other with their beaks, sitting on opposite sides of the roof. The game continued until the ball fell to the ground.
Next, we briefly talk about the most famous and common species from the genus of ravens: black, gray, common raven, as well as rooks.
Black crow: a brief description and interesting facts
Black crow (lat. Corvus corone) - a bird of the raven genus with plumage, beak and paws of black color. Body length - from 48 to 52 centimeters. The bird lives in the vast expanses of Eurasia, in particular, in Central and Western Europe, Siberia, East Asia and the Far East of Russia.
By nature, black crows are scavengers. Nevertheless, they are not averse to feasting on the grain, worms, or eggs of other birds. The crow is black - the bird is noisy, it can sit on a branch and scream for a long time, taking small breaks between croaking cycles. These birds are absolutely fearless, they can attack eagles and golden eagles. Sometimes they attack cattle (especially in winter).
Hoodie
The crow (Corvus cornix) is a separate species of the corvidae family, or, according to other classifications, a subspecies of the black crow. The body length of the bird usually does not exceed 50 centimeters. The feathers on the body are gray, with the exception of the wings, head and tail. There is a gray crow in Central and Eastern Europe, Scandinavia, Asia Minor and Russia (up to the Ural Mountains).
Gray ravens well remember the places where they hid their prey. They show considerable ingenuity in the process of obtaining food. For example, they throw nuts from a great height in order to crack them. What else is the crow known for? An interesting fact from her life: a bird, having discovered a dry piece of bread, first soak it in the nearest puddle, and only then begins to eat. By the way, gray crows remember and recognize those people who feed them.
Common raven
An ordinary raven, or simply a raven (lat. Corvus corax) - one of the most common species of birds. Its range covers almost the entire Northern Hemisphere of the Earth, including Central America, North Africa and the southern coast of Greenland.
The body weight of the bird reaches 1500-1600 g, and the length is 65-70 centimeters. Distinctive features of an ordinary crow: a massive sharp beak and the presence of elongated feathers on the neck (the so-called "beard"). The plumage is solid, black with a metallic tint.
The raven is a very cautious bird with patience and the ability to wait. The degree of socialization of this bird is extremely low. Basically, crows are kept in pairs, and only in winter can be combined into small flocks.
