I took Fig to a park we hadn't been to for months. The local Crows were very interested in Fig, probably because the resident couple had produced a large number of offspring the last two years. Young Crows have short attention spans, and give up their interest in protesting very loudly after a while. A mated couple of older Crows, on their turf, however, will fuss for a good hour over tresspassers, but they measure out their effort so they don't exhaust themselves in the short term, though they still manage a loud display. And they did. What a racket!
Long after their young brood had caught a clue and flown off for the evening roost, this pair coninued to brazenly circle overhead intermittently, and caw at Fig from a rooftop, standing side by side facing us directly. Fig does not feel the least threatened when we are together. She knows I am protecting her. She just fluffs up on a fence and preens quietly being sure to face me. She only gets fearful if the other birds circle closely.
I decided to have a bit of fun using the Crow lingo I've learned. First, I used the caw for announcing my presence. Well they did not like that at all as it must seem incredibly sarcastic to announce your presence non challantly while standing in some one else's living room. Then I issued the call for friend. That got them really pissed off and growling. You are not our friend! Then I called out, does anyone want to chat? One of the pair answered back with an aw the tone of which was softening towards cordial. Well, her mate did not like that at all. They started bickering, and pecking and before long they were tumbling and tussling in a full on growling lover's brawl on the rooftop which went on for thirty seconds. A real full on fight. Then they returned to their post, to continue venting. But their fight had used up their last bit of energy, and they soon headed off for the night to roost in wuite a huff, at us, and at each other.
I think the worst thing you can do is show aggression towards wild Crows. Unless you enjoy being cawed at wherever you go. If you learn a few calls, its easy to communicate that you are not threatening, and in a short time, you will see a dramatic change in how you are perceived. There is no benefit to being know as threatening. Being an acquaintance on the other hand enables you to quietly observe Crows engaging in lots of fun, entertaining activities that they won't be displaying in the presence of a threat.
This is not to say that I don't press my physical clout a bit. I do not tolerate Crows coming close to Fig. Dive bombing, growling, threatening by standing in treetops (this seems to be some sort of standard territorial proclamation stance, my tree!) etc... I will check those behaviors, but I won't push unless pushed first. This way the wild Crows learn that Fig and I are a pair, that we are not a threat, especially not her, but that we will command respect. The Crows at the other parks we frequent more often all basically ignore us now after a quick greeting, passport check. We'll see if the Crows at this park are fast learners. I'm sure they'll be reasonable like the rest. I certainly hope so because the neighbors will complain if they have to endure listening to Crows mobbing Fig everytime I go to that park.
Long after their young brood had caught a clue and flown off for the evening roost, this pair coninued to brazenly circle overhead intermittently, and caw at Fig from a rooftop, standing side by side facing us directly. Fig does not feel the least threatened when we are together. She knows I am protecting her. She just fluffs up on a fence and preens quietly being sure to face me. She only gets fearful if the other birds circle closely.
I decided to have a bit of fun using the Crow lingo I've learned. First, I used the caw for announcing my presence. Well they did not like that at all as it must seem incredibly sarcastic to announce your presence non challantly while standing in some one else's living room. Then I issued the call for friend. That got them really pissed off and growling. You are not our friend! Then I called out, does anyone want to chat? One of the pair answered back with an aw the tone of which was softening towards cordial. Well, her mate did not like that at all. They started bickering, and pecking and before long they were tumbling and tussling in a full on growling lover's brawl on the rooftop which went on for thirty seconds. A real full on fight. Then they returned to their post, to continue venting. But their fight had used up their last bit of energy, and they soon headed off for the night to roost in wuite a huff, at us, and at each other.
I think the worst thing you can do is show aggression towards wild Crows. Unless you enjoy being cawed at wherever you go. If you learn a few calls, its easy to communicate that you are not threatening, and in a short time, you will see a dramatic change in how you are perceived. There is no benefit to being know as threatening. Being an acquaintance on the other hand enables you to quietly observe Crows engaging in lots of fun, entertaining activities that they won't be displaying in the presence of a threat.
This is not to say that I don't press my physical clout a bit. I do not tolerate Crows coming close to Fig. Dive bombing, growling, threatening by standing in treetops (this seems to be some sort of standard territorial proclamation stance, my tree!) etc... I will check those behaviors, but I won't push unless pushed first. This way the wild Crows learn that Fig and I are a pair, that we are not a threat, especially not her, but that we will command respect. The Crows at the other parks we frequent more often all basically ignore us now after a quick greeting, passport check. We'll see if the Crows at this park are fast learners. I'm sure they'll be reasonable like the rest. I certainly hope so because the neighbors will complain if they have to endure listening to Crows mobbing Fig everytime I go to that park.
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