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Carl T. Bergstrom

Crows are also loyal and brave.

Please do not piss them off because they hold grudges — and share these grudges with their brethren.

Victims, clockwise from top left: Bald eagle, red-tailed hawk, osprey, common raven.

168 comments
Carl T. Bergstrom replied to Carl T. Bergstrom

Which brings me to a warning.

Tempting as it can be, under no circumstances should you use the instructions I’ve provided here to assemble your own personal arm of crows to carry out acts of unspeakable evil—or even to wage justified campaigns of retribution against your enemies.

Crows are wise birds, and they will catch own quickly. Once your crow army realizes that your seeming friendship is merely an instrumental ploy to harness their power to your own ends, may God help you—for I cannot.

Carl T. Bergstrom replied to Carl T. Bergstrom

So that's pretty much it. It's relatively easy to befriend crows, and it's endlessly rewarding. I hope that a few of you are able to make crow friends of your own, and I look forward to hearing about your adventures with them.

lakelady replied to Carl T. Bergstrom

@ct_bergstrom Carl, thank you so much for this thread. I have an old and very dear friend who is a HUGE fan of crows. She even has one tattooed on her calf. She's currently in the hospital fighting for her life. And I sit here 3000 miles away feeling helpless. Your thread lifted my spirits during a rough holiday season. Thank you! ❤️

Mary Nelson replied to Carl T. Bergstrom

@ct_bergstrom Thank you for such an informative thread. I've always enjoyed our neighborhood crows. A group of them regularly spend time in our back garden (commonly 5-6). Never realized we could try to befriend them. Thanks for the advice.

Greenseer :autism: 💚 replied to Carl T. Bergstrom

@ct_bergstrom I share your regard for and love of crows. Have had some very special interactions with them which have taught me much about their 'crowmanity'. Would add one more thing. They exist with other birds. Have often noted how when garden birds are threatened by arrival of a predator, one crow calls the others and in comes the support. They are an important part of a bird community

lauowolf replied to Carl T. Bergstrom

@ct_bergstrom I have two different groups who come by for peanuts. There were a few initial squabbles but now they seem to have a time sharing arrangement.Original crow is still my fave, so smart and shiny!

Matti Aleve replied to Carl T. Bergstrom

@ct_bergstrom such an informative thread thank you. Shared with wife and daughter. We’ve taken up birding the last year or so. Going to have to try and make friends with our neighborhood crows. In the spring we hand 6-8 crows regularly they disappeared for a while and just a couple around now. These pictures taken when they were in a tree in our backyard.

Scott L. Williams replied to Carl T. Bergstrom

@ct_bergstrom It’s gonna be one of my New Year’s resolutions. Thanks for the encouragement! Is dog kibble too dry for them? I always have some while I’m walking my dogs.

PamVT41 replied to Scott L. Williams

@swims @ct_bergstrom I would offer berries or unsalted nuts, seeds
. with water frozen over mmaybe kibble is dry. My vet said for dogs and cats kibble should not be fed without lots of water.

Scott L. Williams replied to PamVT41

@PamVT41 yeah, I always soak my kibble for my pups, but professor Bergstrom says crows love kibble. They’re never gonna get a ton of it. Just a snack. 🙂

David replied to Carl T. Bergstrom

@ct_bergstrom To Live Where Ravens Call

Often I will hear them overhead.
I may be in the garden,
Sitting on the stoop,
Or even indoors.

Driving, I may see a pair
Flying over a farmer mowing his fields,
Black feathers glinting as they tilt in the sun.

Always their presence causes me to stop.
To be still for a moment.

This has been going on so long
It’s impossible to say
When it became essential
To live where ravens call.

deadrose replied to Carl T. Bergstrom

@ct_bergstrom We live near the southern roost and feed our crows regularly.

We have an old arbor in the back yard and perch a dog dish up there full of puppy chow, peanuts, and other delicious treats, especially during breeding season. They're still skittish about us being in the yard when they are, but they will sit on the arbor & wait for us to come in the kitchen. They make deliberate eye contact before they fly off to a nearby tree. And we do get occasional gifts.

Eugene Parnell replied to Carl T. Bergstrom

@ct_bergstrom A few years ago I was between jobs and used the down time to do garden projects. I’d often pick up lunch from a fast food chain and eat outside. I’d give my extra fries to the crows. I wouldn’t call them friends exactly but they knew me. Then one day I was working and I saw a crow flit by and something dropped into the grass beside me. It was a shrimp. A cooked shrimp with tail on, grill lines, and sweet and sour sauce. My crow friends had air dropped me a shrimp.

KatM replied to Carl T. Bergstrom

@ct_bergstrom I was making progress befriending the crows in my neighborhood but they won't come to my yard anymore. My guess is it's because of the aggressive blue Jays, fox, and random cat that also spend a lot of time here. I think there's enough food around they didn't want to deal with the drama and I understand but I'm kinda sad about it.

Ben Gleeson replied to Carl T. Bergstrom

@ct_bergstrom no crows here. Our local corvids are ravens (Braidwood, near Canberra). We don’t deliberately feed them, but cohabit nonetheless. They’re regularly found in our kitchen and chook pen. I took this blurry pic on the wing one time. (Edited cos they’re just ravens, not ‘little’).

Carl T. Bergstrom replied to Ben

@Socio_eco_evo ah yes, I remember seeing these ravens on Black Mountain when I was last there, about a decade ago. Lovely birds.

Ben Gleeson replied to Carl T. Bergstrom

@ct_bergstrom we are a bit spoilt around here. Currawongs and choughs also quite charismatic.

whetstone replied to Carl T. Bergstrom

@ct_bergstrom inspired by this thread, literally the *only* thing i asked for for christmas was a large (25 pound) bag of unsalted peanuts.

practicing my potential calls: either “hello crows” (i like the internal rhyme) or 「カラス来い!」(sounds like « karasu koi », “come, crows!” in Japanese).

i am about to have so many friends

xelle replied to whetstone

@ct_bergstrom @whetstone can I steal this? My college campus in Kodaira has many large karasu to befriend, and I already keep kitty treats in my purse for Acchi (skittish campus calico).

whetstone replied to xelle

@xelle @ct_bergstrom I think you may get some pushback because of the general Japanese attitude toward crows, but personally i think you can never have too many friends.

RNsassy replied to Carl T. Bergstrom

@ct_bergstrom I loved this thread, and I'm going to do this after the new year. Cool birds.

Ginny Maier replied to Carl T. Bergstrom

@ct_bergstrom my husband and I befriended an injured Common Raven in the Duluth Zoo many years ago. We began playing a sort of "pass the stick" game with it through the bars of its cage. It clearly came to recognize us and would bring a stick to the bars of the cage whenever we saw it. I don't know how many zoo visitors it had trained in this way, but we were thrilled to be able to share some fun with it whenever we saw it.

Jay Jason, DJ - FM/AM replied to Carl T. Bergstrom

@ct_bergstrom

Carl, this is a wonderful thread - thank you so much for taking the time to assemble it and share it with us. We are going to try to befriend our neighborhood crows - and will be sure to not use them for evil. 🙂

Liz Field 🏳️‍⚧️ She/They replied to Carl T. Bergstrom

@ct_bergstrom this is great! Thank you. My dad’s middle name was Crow, so I gave my daughter that middle name, too. She is Lily Crow & she has a crow tattooed on her arm. We also used to get hundreds of crows flying around our neighborhood. I would watch them closely but never tried to befriend them or feed them. But I think I will. I’ve always related well to animals & birds.

London! replied to Carl T. Bergstrom

@ct_bergstrom re: safe crow snacks for anyone reading, a great option is to find your local speciality parrot shop and look at their offerings for large parrots. Crows aren’t hookbills of course, but the kinds of things that are tasty and safe for large, highly intelligent tool-using birds tend to be similar. You can buy a big bag of raw unsalted nuts, seeds, bits of dried fruits and veggies, and little pressed nugget type bits in bulk to amaze and amuse any bird inexpensively!

dhooverart replied to Carl T. Bergstrom

@ct_bergstrom Wonderful thread, thank you. I'm hoping to make friends with the crows that nest in the trees next to my house. I could hear their fledglings this year but never saw them. It would be such a treat to see those grumpy faces.

Ross B from the oaty sea replied to Carl T. Bergstrom

@ct_bergstrom Excellent thread Carl. We don't have many crows near our house, but I watched with deep respect one day as two crows (mates? Hard to tell if one male and one female) hassled and managed a large domestic cat away from their nest. They played good crow/bad crow, one swooping the cat and the other playing vulnerable, then swapping roles. Clever birds.

I live in southern inland Queensland and we do get magpies wires.org.au/wildlife-informat and currawongs. paulineconolly.com/2017/are-cu

They too are intelligent and personable. They remember you and once you are friends they don't annoy you by swooping in breeding season. Because they will know you are not interested in predating on their nest.

Oh, and I like to talk to my maggies and currawongs in much the same way you talk to your crows. I also tell them how handsome they are.

@ct_bergstrom Excellent thread Carl. We don't have many crows near our house, but I watched with deep respect one day as two crows (mates? Hard to tell if one male and one female) hassled and managed a large domestic cat away from their nest. They played good crow/bad crow, one swooping the cat and the other playing vulnerable, then swapping roles. Clever birds.

Carl T. Bergstrom replied to Ross B from the oaty sea

@rwba I adore Australian magpies and currawongs. They have the most wonderful morning songs as well.

Ross B from the oaty sea replied to Carl T. Bergstrom

@ct_bergstrom Indeed. I have read that a magpie's song is one of the most complex in the world, if not the most. Currawongs not as complex, bu very melodic. And currawongs are remarkable aeronauts. They can fly at high speed through a tangle of narrow openings. Wonderful birds.

I got to know ours because they came up to the back deck and used to steal the dog's food, so I would go out and let them know that they should beware of our demented Jack Russell who would make a meal of them in s heartbeat. I used to take kibbles (which was what they were after) and put some up on the handrail. They would watch as I did and as I made some distance they would fly in and swallow a few and then depart. I assumed to the nest.

@ct_bergstrom Indeed. I have read that a magpie's song is one of the most complex in the world, if not the most. Currawongs not as complex, bu very melodic. And currawongs are remarkable aeronauts. They can fly at high speed through a tangle of narrow openings. Wonderful birds.

I got to know ours because they came up to the back deck and used to steal the dog's food, so I would go out and let them know that they should beware of our demented Jack Russell who would make a meal of them in s heartbeat....

Eilonwy replied to Carl T. Bergstrom

@ct_bergstrom Great thread. We had magpies, crows and ravens all over the place around the ranch where I grew up. And, yeah, I would talk to them and watch them while they watched me. Fascinating birds, but they just said no to letting a certain little girl catch them so they could be her pets.

Anu Lahtinen replied to Carl T. Bergstrom

@ct_bergstrom

Thanks for sharing your experience! I have been observing magpies for many years and it is wonderful to learn how clever and creative personalieties these birds can be.

Mary M. Redoutey replied to Carl T. Bergstrom

@ct_bergstrom I used to feed crows a lot but moved where I don't feel able to do so. When a Native American man I knew called Little Crow died I was unable to go to Minnesota for his memorial.

Mary M. Redoutey replied to Mary M. Redoutey

@ct_bergstrom Four crows arrived in my apartment complex and repeatedly cawed at the time of his memorial. I said, " but it is 7 directions not 4 directions." (add up, down and within you to the 4 directions). And three more crows came to join them swawking. They were there for awhile. Later, I got into the habit of giving them bread (yeah now I know it isn't the best thing for them but then. Oh well.

Mary M. Redoutey replied to Mary M. Redoutey

@ct_bergstrom They liked it and whatever they didn't eat they banked by pushing it into the grass, under roof shingles, and into other hiding places.)I fed them on the little railing of my own porch as a neighbor complained about food being left out in a common area. If I was late feeding them, they would come and peer into my window as if to say, "I'm here. Feed me." I fed them until I could do it no longer.

Mary M. Redoutey replied to Mary M. Redoutey

@ct_bergstrom I really appreciate you posting your thread about crows. They are remarkable and intelligent. I see them toss nuts and seeds into the road so that cars will crack them open. And I have seen some really cool videos of them using tools: youtu.be/UZM9GpLXepU

Hunteress replied to Carl T. Bergstrom

@ct_bergstrom Not really friends, they know I don't harm them. Sometimes/ often they play with me while with pocket cam on my way. Damn intelligent cute mess on two feet! 😂 😂 Thank you so much for this photo!!

Lizbon replied to Carl T. Bergstrom

@ct_bergstrom Ok now I’m inspired to introduce myself to the 4 crows that live near me. I’ve been watching them chase off the incredibly fat & resourceful squirrels that pilfer from the bird feeder. They are the only ones who can intimidate the squirrels, & they’re so well-organized!

hallvors replied to Carl T. Bergstrom

@ct_bergstrom Lovely thread. We had a pair of magpies nesting in our urban back yard once. If it happens again I will try peanuts.

Alexis replied to Carl T. Bergstrom

@ct_bergstrom Everything you've said here is why I've been making an effort to become known to the local crows as The Human With Almonds. Never a whole lot at any given time, but enough for everyone in the flock to get a piece of one. They're beautiful, smart birds and watching their antics has gotten me through so many rough days.

pedokomparator replied to Carl T. Bergstrom

@ct_bergstrom For some years now I am wondering what‘s going on in late autumn and spring. There are always extremely large gatherings (guess some hundreds of crows) on very high rooftops. They sit in groups with some birds flying around. What are they doing? Is it kind of a survey thing? Some kind of conference?

Laure du Tilia replied to Carl T. Bergstrom

@ct_bergstrom so cute! Thank you for this explanation, I will absolutely try it at home!

Samhain Night 4 Harris replied to Carl T. Bergstrom

@ct_bergstrom When I lived in Paulsbo, the crows and seagulls would protect the ducks from the bald eagles by attacking them!

Mary M. Redoutey replied to Carl T. Bergstrom

@ct_bergstrom They like going after the tail feathers of Red Tailed Hawks in my area. I like crows but when they gang up on Hawks I do get a bit angry at them and am glad when the crows tire of their attack as two against one is just not fair. I know that both crows and hawks are predatory on eggs and young and are territorial.

Colopen replied to Carl T. Bergstrom

@ct_bergstrom from reading your thread, I am understanding that crows are awesome & beautiful

Mask’al’s Wager replied to Carl T. Bergstrom

@ct_bergstrom I KNEW IT! There was so much bird drama yesterday on the back balcony (upper NYC) - it was the hawk threatening all the birds (noise, signifying nothing). All the crows got in one tree and just started barking at her like "SHUT UP ALREADY" - I only got the tailend of it on a terribly shot video but you can hear them at least (and a wee bit of the hawk flying away).

Cavyherd replied to Carl T. Bergstrom

@ct_bergstrom

I remember vividly the Lakota Elder who warned about the inadvisability of pissing crows off, or messing with them when they are in a bad mood.

And, IIRC, they're capable of being Quite Creative with their retribution.

Chris Coleman replied to Carl T. Bergstrom

@ct_bergstrom I was raking leaves a few weeks ago when I heard some birds making a racket. I turned and saw a crow chasing a bald eagle over my neighbor’s house.

TJ Radcliffe replied to Carl T. Bergstrom

@ct_bergstrom If you've got any middle-grade crow-lovers in your life they might enjoy this book, which features an intelligent crow (set in the far futures when humans did something to make many animals intelligent and then vanished from the world). Adults have enjoyed the series as well! amazon.com/Cedar-Island-Dreams

Eddie Roosenmaallen replied to Carl T. Bergstrom

@ct_bergstrom
Wait, crows can teach their grudges to other crows? How is that not bigger news? Forming cliques seems like a really advanced social behaviour.

Cladocera replied to Carl T. Bergstrom

@ct_bergstrom we’ve had “murder crows” in our neighborhood the past couple of years. Watched one take out a bunny.

Michael - [ now is the time ] replied to Carl T. Bergstrom

@ct_bergstrom We live on a sea cove, small island in BC, in a field surrounded by forest and sea and there are many resident crows and ravens here, and it is something to see when they decide they don't want one of the bald eagles using this area. They're really amazing. Would love to develop a relationship with them, however there is just so much natural food here. They eat crabs and oysters and other things from the intertidal all day and I don't think anything I could offer would tempt them!

Zac replied to Carl T. Bergstrom

@ct_bergstrom

I listened to a piece on CBC about a study they did at a university in Ontario. When they went out to get crows (weight and adding a band to track them) they wore a mask.

They stopped doing the banding for a few years but...

They could then go out in the mask and have crows yell warnings about the person wearing the mask. Even crows that were too young to have ever been captured.

peachfront replied to Carl T. Bergstrom

@ct_bergstrom
Never forgive, never forget!-- "all crows are honorary Scorpios"

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