Clever Corvids

Think of them as toddling about in the grass looking like bikers 😆

Oreo

I like leather jackets too 😁

I find them rather indigestible 😁

I like leather jackets too 😁

We don’t have many covids near here but a flock of starlings has started coming into the garden and picking off bugs from the grass. I like starlings, they’re cheery little things and very pretty with their glossy feathers.
Yes, the starlings have arrived here again, fewer so far this year though. We thought they were eating ants ut apparently they like leather jackets best.

Georgesgran

Just glanced out of the window and the 5 fat balls I put out this morning have already gone!

You need to put them in a squirrel proof feeder for fat balls, same for any seed, my Mum does this as she hates seeing squirrels and rooks and jackdaws get all the food.
I have to say that tho intelligent I don’t like any crows and similar, something to do with the way they hop and the glinty eyes.👀

Pigeons hang around beneath the feeders - waiting for dropped food from the smaller birds. One, rather bold, aggressive, impatient type decided to fly at the feeder instead, to dislodge a handful of sunflower hearts.

Now, a few others have copied this tactic, so my regular orders of a baker's sackful have increased. Yes, local magpies here bring bread to dip in the bird bath too!

Corvids, especially common crows, have formidable memories and will pass on what they know to others of the same species. Show one kindness and all the other crows around will know you're a friend of crows. Feed one and it will bring you presents – paperclips, bits of ribbon, and so on. Be unkind, on the other hand, and words will get round and will be passed on to future generations.

We have some rectangular wire fat feeders. The fat is inserted through an opening at the bottom which is then hooked shut. The jackdaws lift the whole 'cage' off the hook it is hanging from and drop it from a height. They then unhook the bottom and extract the big fat rectangle from the 'cage' and fly off with huge chunks.

Foxygloves

What has happened to Princesse - isn’t she your rescue dog?

We've changed here name. Princesse is not good for recall and instant recognition. She got used to is straightaway.

Corvus is a wonderful book! We lived nearby so could well imagine the places the author wrote about.

I used to put fat balls down in a tray for smaller birds but the rooks would come and snatch the balls up in their entirety. I had to start breaking up the fat balls by microwaving them briefly to soften them then bash them into smaller pieces.

We don’t have many covids near here but a flock of starlings has started coming into the garden and picking off bugs from the grass. I like starlings, they’re cheery little things and very pretty with their glossy feathers.

Georgesgran - we had that problem with crows knocking on the window. We read somewhere that putting a doll in the window, or a picture of a face, would deter them. We tried it, and they moved to a different window, so we moved the doll. They gave up!

What has happened to Princesse - isn’t she your rescue dog?

I have a pair od semi tamed crows- well he is, she still keeps her distance but is getting bolder. They come every day to get a few soaked dog pellets, Fly to the big ash tree at the side, then down to the garden shed, and on to a large upturned water butt just a couple of meters from kitchen window. Kiddo will come and feed even if I am sitting on kitchen steps, she will wait for me to go in. Not bothered about either Yata the dog, or Minou the cat.

Magpies collect dry bread from other gardens then bring it to our bird bath for dunking.

I once watched a crow take a nut from a walnut tree then fly high to drop it in the hope of cracking it. Unfortunately the lawn underneath was so lush and bouncy the crow had no luck!

Just glanced out of the window and the 5 fat balls I put out this morning have already gone!

Same here! I’ve wired the feeders to the hooks and the jackdaws still manage to get them off and remove the contents - 5 luxury fat balls almost every day! I can hardly keep up.
I’ve posted before about them hammering at my windows which is quite off putting to say the least. I’m keeping the bedroom windows covered which seems to help, but they can see their reflection in the landing window which I can’t cover and they attack their own reflections in that during the day, from the crack of dawn!
I know orphaned, hand reared jackdaws can be taught to talk, although it’s illegal to capture them.
I saw a programme years ago, where tame crows dropped stones in a narrow container of water to raise the level to get a drink. Clever?

Yes, exactly the same. They also seem to send a scout out to check if I’ve put the food out yet. They are very intelligent and currently eating/taking huge amounts.

I love birds and many are as intelligent as corvids - or nearly so. I used to keep pigeons and they are pretty clever too. You should read Corvus by Esther Woolfson - it's about a family who adopted a rook (and other birds). It must be great for you to see your clever crows every day.