A Conversation for American Crows
One Smart Birdy
King Lerxst -Keeper of Small, Sharp, Pieces of Flint Started conversation Jun 21, 2001
I have a book called, "Marvels and Mysteries of the Animal World" which has a great section on the crow. One of the most interesting points in the story is that wild crows can learn to distinguish a rifle from a rifle-shaped stick. More precisely, if a farmer were to run out of the farmhouse with a rifle, the crows would scatter to the four winds , but they'd hang around if he was trying to pull a fast one with his cane.
On a personal note: When I was a boy of about 9, I was out on the deck of my swingset eating lunch...I think it was a cassarole. I was startled when a large crow landed right above me and amazed when he began saying, "Turdbird! Turdbird!"
As it turns out, his name was indeed Turdbird, and he was the pet of my mother's cousin, Jim (who lived across the valley). The voice was a bit rough, but it was easy to understand. I gave him some tic tacs later that same day and he stuffed them into the siding of my grandmother's front porch.
That's a true story. 
Key: Complain about this post
One Smart Birdy
More Conversations for American Crows
Write an Entry
"The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy is a wholly remarkable book. It has been compiled and recompiled many times and under many different editorships. It contains contributions from countless numbers of travellers and researchers."