We always have one or two pairs of American Crows around, so nothing special in that. I really don’t know how many constitutes a murder of crows but most unusually this morning (12 June) we had eight on the ground in our grassy riverside area – all very sleek, pristine, busy and inquisitive – and an unprecedented number within the last ten years. At one point five or six were jockeying for position on a moss-covered rock as seen in my rather poor photos (hyperactivity meets slow shutter speed!) so perhaps there was a bit of juvenile behaviour on show. Could we be seeing a single brood, I wonder – less of a murder, more of a family?
Peter Armstrong, Warsaw
Note: Crows can have up nine young and, given the mid-June date, I think they could have been this year’s young. Crows often stay together in year-round family groups that consist of the breeding pair and offspring from the past two years. The whole family cooperates to raise young. (Source: All About Birds) D.M.
American Crows(2) June 12, 2016 – Peter Armstrong
