POSSESSING LARGE BRAINS for his or her physique measurement, a knack for social networking that requires no web connection, and eager powers of statement, crows and ravens are among the many large personalities of the chook world. They’re additionally what ornithologist Dr. John Marzluff calls, “black-feathered practitioners of lifelong studying,” and from him we are able to be taught in regards to the capability of their avian brains and the vary of issues it permits them to do–from the humorous to the daring, a lot of it virtually unbelievable.

Marzluff is a famend ornithologist and concrete ecologist, and professor of wildlife sciences on the College of Washington. He’s creator most just lately of “Welcome to Subirdia”—his fifth e-book. He has written different titles particularly about his space of specific experience, the corvids—crows, ravens, jays and their family—together with one in collaboration with illustrator Tony Angell that I simply learn referred to as “Items of the Crow,” the topic of our dialogue.

Learn alongside as you take heed to the Dec. 21, 2015 version of my public-radio present and podcast utilizing the participant under. You may subscribe to all future editions on iTunes or Stitcher (and browse my archive of podcasts right here).

my crow and raven q&a with dr. john marzluff

Q. It has been raining right here right now. We haven’t had a lot rain within the Northeast recently, although I do know you’ve been having loopy, loopy rain within the Pacific Northwest.

A. It is extremely, very moist.

Q. Searching the window right now, I used to be pondering: How do birds keep dry, anyway? There’s at all times a query in regards to the birds; I’ve infinite questions on them.

A. They’ve bought, happily, very good oil glands, they usually simply coat themselves with a sheen of oil and many of the rain simply beads proper off of their again and rolls off.

Q. Good chook—or well-built birds.

The corvids—the crows, the ravens. I like these birds, and take into account it a deal with when a flock of crows come calling or a raven leaves its distinctive tracks within the snow.

I suppose I’ve to ask the boring query first: Who’s who? How can we inform crow and ravens aside?

A. The raven is a a lot larger cousin of the crow. They’re in the identical genus [Corvus], and so they’re carefully associated and share lots of traits due to that. However the voice is the simplest attribute. When you can hear them, the crow is principally going to caw, and the raven goes to quark, and drip like a faucet and bark like a canine, and make a number of different kinds of noises.

Q. [Laughter.]

A. Being about twice the scale, and having a few 4-foot wingspan, the raven actually dwarfs the crow whenever you see them aspect by aspect. Its tail can be extra formed like a diamond, and it’s bought extra of a beard round its throat from its lanceolate feathers there.

Q. I really feel like I see crows in numbers, and ravens in onesies and twosies. Is that an incorrect assumption, or a attribute?

A. That’s fairly attribute. Ravens and crows each mate and kind monogamous, lifelong pair bonds, however the raven rapidly kicks its child out of the territory and the pair patrols that territory. [Laughter.] You usually simply see the pair.

Q. Is the raven our largest songbird?

A. It’s the biggest songbird on the earth. Technically it’s a songbird due to complicated throat musculature that it has.

Q. It has a syrinx?

A. All birds have a syrinx. It has a junction field there between the 2 branches of the bronchi that go to the lungs, and it’s the place the voice is produced. However the factor that the songbirds have that the others don’t are very complicated muscle tissue that wrap round that syrinx in order that it will probably warp and pull and stretch in so some ways to make such a variable quantity of noise.

Q. Attention-grabbing. The subheading of the e-book “Items of the Crow” reads, “How Notion, Emotion, and Thought Enable Good Birds to Behave Like People.” Quite a few occasions as I used to be studying the e-book I used to be flashing on a Nationwide Geographic sequence from a number of years in the past referred to as “Monkey Thieves” in regards to the troupes of rhesus macaque monkeys of Jaipur, India, and pondering these corvids remind me of these monkeys! [Laughter.]

In truth within the e-book you do be aware a number of facets of avian cognition seen in these birds that scientists had thought for a very long time solely people and a few monkeys possessed–like perception, for example.

A. Perception has at all times been one of many hallmarks of primates. The thought right here is that you would be able to take a look at an issue and intuit the answer, mainly see the steps which are required to unravel this drawback. So think about meals hanging from a string, or buried in a tube you can’t attain. You may begin pondering, “How can I place that tube, or may I take advantage of a instrument to get at that meals that’s in there?”

Monkeys after all will remedy that drawback, however crows do as nicely. Relying on the species, some, like the New Caledonian crow would trend a instrument to get that meals out—they usually do it virtually immediately after they see the issue.

Others may drop issues into water to boost the extent and float meals as much as them, or use different kinds of superior strategies to get on the answer to an issue. [Above, New Caledonian crow making a hooked tool from straight piece of wire.]

Q. Wonderful. You additionally say within the e-book that they are often observers of physique language and the intent of different people, or different creatures.

A. We did some experiments right here with our American crows that reside right here in Seattle, they usually’re fairly tame right here. You may usually get fairly near them within the metropolis. However for those who lunge at them and even for those who simply take a look at them as you strategy, they’re a very completely different chook. They’ll stand away, they’ll transfer away; they perceive that you’re paying them some consideration and due to this fact it might be good or it might be dangerous, however they’re not going to take the chance.

Q. Till the Nineteen Sixties, you write, birds had been considered simpletons by scientists, like that expression “birdbrain.” You don’t assume birdbrain is a slur, do you? [Above, another video example of birds’ ingenuity in using “tools.]

A. It’s a praise of the best order, to make certain.

Q. In a number of the corvids, their brains are notably giant for his or her physique measurement.

A. It’s necessary to know that it’s relative to their physique measurement. The mind of a crow is in regards to the measurement of your thumb, however the chook solely weighs lower than a pound. So it’s a big mind relative to its physique measurement. Evaluate it to one thing like an ostrich—which is the opposite excessive for a chook. A really large physique, however in all probability not the brightest chook on the market. However crows and ravens, their brains are far more for his or her physique measurement on line with what we’d take into account the small monkeys to have. They’re actually extra like a primate by way of the quantity of brainpower they’ll deliver to an issue.

Q. Mammals and birds each hint again to similar reptilian mind—we’ve got a typical ancestry, don’t we?

A. That’s the one level we attempt to make within the e-book. A number of the stuff you see and the way you interpret them do appear unbelievable. Nevertheless it all comes again to the similarity we’ve got in not solely our brains, however the specific nerve cells in our brains—the transmitters that permit us to speak between nerve cells within the mind and kind complicated reminiscences. That each one goes again to this reptilian heritage that mammals and reptiles and birds all share.

Q. So attention-grabbing. Did eating regimen—or does eating regimen—need to do with how developed sure of the corvids’ brains have develop into? As a result of they love meals, don’t they? [Laughter.]

A. It’s concerned, they usually’ll do something to get at meals.

It’s virtually to flip that round a bit: As a result of they’ve a big mind in addition they need to seize lots of power daily. So that they need to have a high-quality eating regimen, or at the least lots of no matter they’re consuming.

The mind is the costliest organ within the physique for us in addition to another vertebrate. It takes a ton of power, and when you could have an enormous one, you’re sacrificing the necessity to do different issues as a substitute of getting meals. You’re sacrificing that and buying and selling it off with the power to do issues very effectively with that mind.

Q. We’ve been speaking about ravens, and crows, they usually produce other family just like the jays. Have they got related diets, or eat distinctive issues?

A. They’re very completely different. I’d say that throughout the corvids typically, and there are about 140 species there, some are excessive specialists. The pinyon jay, for instance, eats primarily pine seeds. It shops pine seeds by means of to the autumn to gasoline its economic system all winter and spring. Different birds just like the raven and generalists, they usually’ll eat something that strikes or lies round too lengthy [laughter]—they’re going to eat it.

Some are very versatile in eating regimen, and others are very specialised.  The attention-grabbing factor is that specialization has pushed some elements of the mind of those birds to be unimaginable—just like the pinyon jay I discussed has to recollect the place it places all these seeds. So it has a really giant hippocampus, a part of its mind that’s answerable for spatial reminiscence.

The raven has bought to unravel a number of completely different issues and determine a number of completely different meals out, so it has a big common forebrain.

Q. You write in “Items of the Crow” that everybody at all times has a crow story, and I think whenever you go to cocktail events everyone needs to inform you theirs.

A. Sure.

Q. [Laughter.] Relatively than inform you that I wished to ask about one other corvid I appear to draw rather a lot, the blue jay—not an uncommon chook in my rural spot. One in all my peculiarities amongst many is that as a result of nature at all times cleans its plate, I waste nothing—together with mice from traps within the cellar or barn or shed. I simply put them exterior, and by the subsequent morning somebody takes it away.

The opposite day I tossed one out onto the garden, and went inside, and inside minutes one thing caught my eye, and it was a blue jay that got here and stabbed on the mouse and pushed it round at it for a minute, then lifted off and left with it. I didn’t notice they had been omnivores or carrion eaters.

A. I’d say even probably the most specialised seed eaters—and the blue jay is towards that line, and makes a speciality of acorns for probably the most half. However even these which are specialised within the corvids, they’ll at all times take matter like that. They’ll take a small mouse, a small chook, an egg, a small snake or frog. Once more form of getting again to your first level in regards to the high quality of the eating regimen, and that’s excessive power, excessive fats and protein that’s coming in with a small animal like that. That actually helps them meet their energetic wants.

Q. Final winter I noticed a primary with the blue jays once more, after they pecked light-colored latex paint off my entrance porch and would disappear with items of paint. And eggshells as nicely, which I put out for them—inside moments, they choose them up and fly away with them. Have they got a crop the place they’ll stash issues, or a pouch?

A. The blue jay’s bought what we name an expandable throat, which may maintain a few acorns. While you get into one thing like the Clark’s nutcracker, they’ve a particular pouch that’s an area below their tongue that opens up like a pelican’s pouch, they usually can put 150 or so pine seeds in that factor and fly off with it.

So throughout the corvids you see these completely different diversifications to their alternative ways of life, and once more the blue jay is extra common—so it hasn’t dedicated all the way in which to a throat pouch, but it surely’s actually bought some elasticity there to assist it carry an enormous load.

Q. The casual verb “rook”–that means to take cash from somebody by fooling or dishonest them—and it’s additionally the title for a species of corvid. No coincidence, appropriate?

A. I feel it’s undoubtedly associated, sure. [Laughter.]

Q. There’s a chapter within the e-book referred to as “Delinquency.” [Laughter.] Let’s speak about that somewhat.

A. The rook is a fairly giant corvid, form of midway between a raven and a crow in measurement that lives in northern Europe. It’s carefully tied to agricultural lands. It probes round for worms, for probably the most half. However they’re very eager on getting meals and hiding it, and maintaining it hidden from others. They attempt to deceive others by way of the place they put meals for later use. I’d guess that they in all probability stole issues that had been laying across the farm—not simply crops, however shiny issues as nicely. That may have led to that saying.

Q. As I discussed, there’s a chapter within the e-book referred to as “Delinquency,” and an exquisite anecdote about windshield wipers, and delinquent crows.

A. It’s not an remoted incident. The attention-grabbing factor is that evidently corvids have somewhat little bit of a penchant for windshield wipers all all over the world. Out right here within the Northern Cascades, I bought a name from the Nationwide Park Service that was involved with campers there. They had been having their windshield wipers stolen whereas they had been mountaineering or sleeping, they usually had been afraid that folks would have an accident in the event that they bought of their automotive and didn’t notice their wipers had been gone and hit a wet day like right now.

They found out that it was a raven that was stealing these windshield wipers [laughter], they usually had no concepts why, or what number of birds had been concerned. My daughter and I went up there to start out catching the ravens and tagging them and seeing who was taking part, and possibly determining why they had been doing this.

Lengthy story quick: It was a pair of ravens that lived proper round this customer heart that was the offender, and the oldsters on the park had already named it Hitchcock, they usually had been involved once more with the harm it was doing.

We tried to make use of its large mind to our benefit, and we captured the chook, Hitchcock and its mate. We captured them in a parking zone the place automobiles are susceptible to having their windshield wipers taken, and we banded the chook proper on a windshield.

Q. Oh!

A. That’s an uncomfortable factor for a raven. They’re being held by us. Sometimes we attempt to be as calm and hold the birds at the hours of darkness as a lot as attainable, however we didn’t this time. We let him look full-on on the windshield the entire time we had been placing a band on his leg and measuring him, and tagging him for our scientific use later. After which we let him go. However we hoped that he would kind a posh reminiscence of that dangerous factor—that man holding me, and taking a look at a windshield wiper and being on this space—and cease messing with windshield wipers from then on.

And certainly the habits declined. It doesn’t happen now in any respect, and people birds are nonetheless round. We’ve been in a position to make the most of the birds’ mind to show it what’s not acceptable on this setting, and permit the chook to reside there and hold different ravens which may choose up the behavior from coming in as nicely.

The opposite various was simply to kill the chook and take away it.

Q. And folks do this; they get infuriated with birds and destroy them.

A. There are different options, and this was an instance.

Q. You mentioned the birds are nonetheless there. How lengthy do crows and ravens reside?

A. The longest on report are someplace within the 15- or 20-year vary, as a result of you must have a chook banded to observe it, and actually know its precise age. When you do the calculations based mostly on their annual fee of mortality, which could be very low—lower than 5 %—actually there are some birds on the market which are 20, 30 or possibly even 40 years previous on the market within the wild.

Q. Wow. With the windshield-wiper kleptomania, you mentioned it’s not simply that one incident?

A. It’s been reported in a number of nationwide parks within the West. It’s been reported in Australia with a distinct species there. For some motive, these birds actually like rubber. Possibly the pliable nature is form of like an animal pores and skin, they usually tug at it—and that’s one thing that they discover presumably resulting in meals, or that they discover attention-grabbing or stimulating to the touch. We’re probably not positive why they do it.

Q. I’m at all times wowed by tales about crows’ potential for facial recognition. Can we speak about Dick Cheney for a minute? [Laughter.]

A. That is humorous. It was an experiment we devised, as a result of each time we research the birds round right here, we climb to their nests to band their infants. Or we’d catch them to band or tag them. We at all times felt that the birds knew us after that; they acted otherwise. Some had been extra aggressive; some had been extra cautious round us after we had watched them awhile.

So we examined that concept straight. The thought we had was to catch a number of birds—and the way in which we catch them is by capturing a internet over them. In order that’s a scary scenario once more. After we ran as much as get the birds out of the web to band them and tag them, we wore a specific masks.

In our case, the harmful man wore a caveman’s face. So the birds as they had been having this troublesome expertise with us, they had been taking a look at a caveman your complete time.

Our thought was then anyone may put on this caveman’s masks later, and stroll by means of the place we caught birds. We may see if these birds actually reply otherwise, and it wasn’t simply us pondering that. As a result of anyone may do it.

We additionally wished to check the response to us sporting a distinct masks—and that’s the place the Dick Cheney is available in. [Laughter.]

Dick Cheney was the vp on the time, so his masks was on sale within the web, and I bought a pair. We now stroll round campus as Dick Cheney or the caveman, and see if the birds can inform us aside.

Q. And so they can, sure?

A. And so they can, they usually have been for 9 years now. So that is an instance not simply of advantageous discrimination—to inform these two aside—but in addition social studying. Birds which are in a position to inform these masks aside now weren’t even born when the caveman did something improper.

They’ve realized from seeing others who had been round reveal that this man is dangerous.

Q. Apart from being gifted in these methods we’ve been speaking about, crows are inclined to present items—you talked about shiny objects earlier. Have you ever ever obtained any your self?

A. Personally I’ve by no means gotten a present from a crow, in all probability as a result of I do extra scary issues to them than nice issues to them. However I’ve been gifted by studying about these treasures that many individuals get, and I’ve seen many of those treasures—and I’ve seen video of the birds holding these items now.

What it appears like are pretty younger birds in all probability, or maybe birds that don’t have a mate which are courting a human on this case actually as a social associate. Possibly a mate, however at the least as a social associate.

They provide issues like trinkets from lockets, or necklaces or keys, or pencil erasers, or shiny rocks and items of glass are quite common that folks get. It occurs the place both somebody’s achieved a crow a very good deed like free it from a lure, or the place they’ve been feeding them persistently.

Q. I adore it. I’m so glad you would be a part of me once more to inform us in regards to the items of the crow.
(Black-and-white illustrations from “The Items of the Crow” are by co-author Tony Angell.)

extra from john marzluff

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MY WEEKLY public-radio present, rated a “top-5 backyard podcast” by “The Guardian” newspaper within the UK, started its seventh yr in March 2016. In 2016, the present received three silver medals for excellence from the Backyard Writers Affiliation. It’s produced at Robin Hood Radio, the smallest NPR station within the nation. Pay attention regionally within the Hudson Valley (NY)-Berkshires (MA)-Litchfield Hills (CT) Mondays at 8:30 AM Jap, rerun at 8:30 Saturdays. Or play the Dec. 21, 2015 present utilizing the participant close to the highest of this transcript. You may subscribe to all future editions on iTunes or Stitcher (and browse my archive of podcasts right here).

enter to win the e-book

I’LL BUY A COPY of “Items of the Crow” for a fortunate reader. All you must do to enter is reply this query within the feedback field under, all the way in which on the very backside of the web page after the final reader remark:

What’s your crow (or raven) story? As we mentioned within the interview, everybody appears to have one.

No reply, or feeling shy? Simply say, “Depend me in,” or one thing to that impact, and I’ll, however a reply is even higher. I’ll choose a random winner after entries shut at midnight Monday, December 28, 2015. Good luck to all. (Disclosure: Purchases from Amazon affiliate hyperlinks yield a small fee.)