American Crow fledglings on rails – Nikon D500, f7.1, 1/640, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light
I am back home in Utah, I am exhausted but it was wonderful seeing some of my favorite locations in Idaho and Montana. I’ve still got a lot to do after a trip like this including emails to catch up on, files to send and a small mound of laundry to wash so I am going to keep this short and sweet. Well, as short as American Crow fledglings can be.
I don’t have many American Crow photos partly because where I find them most often are in urban settings where it is difficult to photograph. Stick 26 inches of camera and lens out the window in a city and you can make some people nervous or maybe even get the police called for suspicious activity and I don’t need that kind of drama.
There is an area of northeastern Idaho though where I see American Crows in abundance just outside of a small town. When I saw some American Crow fledglings on the rails train track I couldn’t resist trying to photograph them. There were several fledglings on the rails but I liked how these two young American Crows were relatively close together and both looking the same direction, up the rails and to the north and not looking at me.
American Crows, and corvids in general, are very intelligent and are not only capable of using tools but also tool construction and are now considered to be among the world’s most intelligent animals. They must be, they don’t involve themselves in politics.
Life is good.
Mia
Click here to see more of my American Crow photos plus facts and information about this species.
I adore the corvid family. Intelligent, resourceful, family minded birds – who I think are beautiful too.
The idea of Utah declaring a “Crow Season” for the cruel purpose of encouraging young killers to hunt, kill(and maim) these clever creatues, and eventually, other living creatures, makes me sick!!!
Releasing a raised, fostered or rehabbed critter certainly is bitter-sweet–especially when they’ve made you laugh several times every day. I kept them indoors and caged while most vulnerable…then sleepless nights(for me) when they were outside for first nights alone…when migration time came, more sleepless nigthts, hoping they would leave, dreading them doing it , then hoping they wouldn’t get in trouble and would be OK..and wondering if I’d ever see them again…or their offspring…
Oh what a splendid photo! Like you, I’m gaga over the moon about corvids–the whole darn family! And no, they’re not the least bit interested in little human dramas like politics. They’ve got far more important things to ponder!
There was a professor back in Binghamton, New York who offered a crow study program and oh what a fascinating woman! I’d have loved to have studied with her, but by the time I knew of her, I had already decided to move back west. Oh the missed opportunities in life! If only I’d discovered her earlier.
Mary McAvoy, I loved your story, too. I could picture it vividly and what a joy to read. Thank you so much for sharing!!
* American ^
Great post. I love the Amaican Crow. In the yard of my childhood home they reign the skies and the trees. My mother studied them with fascination. Before studies came out about their intelligence, she would refer to them as, “those smart crows were up to something today.” Then she’d share her observations. They were like tribes, calling to one another information and commands. They would sometimes gather for what struck me as regional conventions – easily 100 at a time throughout our yard and neighboring yards. They were huge and shiny jet black. My mother is gone now, but we still own that home and I love being there and seeing and hearing her beloved crows.
Mary, what a delightful story! Thank you so much for sharing it!
So glad you enjoyed! 🙂
I like the image Mia, and I enjoyed Mary’s story too. Crows were common in the San Fernando Valley where I grew up but I never saw such large gatherings until I moved to Utah. Love all the other corvids as well.
I love those baby blue eyes.
No bird I ever raised could nag to be fed like Corby, the crow! Well after he fledged, he would still hunker down, flutter his wings helplessly and beg to be fed whenever,wherever he saw me…At times it seemed almost nightmarish! Glad you’re back safe and sound…I hope the trip was good. I always had “culture shock” returning from camping or wilderness experiences…
Indeed Patty! I had a rehab crow for almost a year as he regrew and replaced his singed feathers. I called him Stuart Crow after a ne’er-do-well race driver son of a famous Dallas real estate developer. Stuart was an excellent driver but he spent way too much of his inheritance, setting himself up as the black sheep of his family.
Stuart replaced his damaged feathers with healthy ones and it was a sad moment when it was time to begin his release back to where he belonged. Oh he was a stinker, trying to take over the title of The Boss of Me in competition with Zoe Kate, the Jack Russell TERRORIST who wasn’t giving it up. Those two made me laugh every day, sometimes hysterically! I love corvids!