> On Fri, 11 Aug 1995, Susan Collicott wrote:
>
> >
> > After watching the antics of the neighborhood crows the past few evenings, I'm
> > wondering if anyone has done a study (or something) in regards to where the
> > big roosts are in Seattle.
>
> > How far from the roost will crows fly during the day? And will they roost
> > in the city?>

On Fri, 11 Aug 1995, Jon Anderson replied:

> Last October 24th, I was boating (working - really) off Restoration Point on
> Bainbridge Island just prior to dusk. I watched about 250 crows fly from
> Bainbridge across to the east toward Alki in about a half-hour. I would
> think that there must be a sizeable roost over there somewhere.

I wouldn't be surprised if those Bainbridge crows continued right through
Seattle up to the big roost at the Arboretum/Husky Stadium area. I
believe that it's common for crows to commute 20 to 50 miles from winter
roosts to feeding areas. But don't take my word for it - one of the more
obscure and enjoyable birding sub-sports is to try to locate crow (or
starling, or...) roosts on your own. The birds start moving generally
roostward by early to mid afternoon, stopping along the way to feed, or
loaf, or just hang out in groups and make crow noises (you can tell I
study bird behavior at the Ph.D. level, can't you?).

With a map, maybe a compass, and a car, you can look for high
flying crows, head to where it looks like they're headed, and drive that
direction. With a little luck, you will see more crows accumulating, the
longer you keep it up (as you get closer to the roost, and as evening
approaches). I've heard that with no prior knowledge, but the right breaks,
you can go into a new area and find where the crows that live there
roost in a single afternoon. Of course, you may end up driving 50 miles
to pinpoint a roost only 8 miles from where you started.

Oops, on the other hand, maybe this isn't the best activity for
Seattleites during the evening rush hour. But if you find yourself around
a bunch of crows out in the country some day, and you're wondering about
their roost, give it a try, I hear it's a lot of fun. And if you want to
see a lot of crows in Seattle, Jon's right, try the Arboretum/Stadium
area on an October evening so, and you should see several thousand (anyone
got a competent count?)


Chris Hill
Seattle, WA
cehill at u.washington.edu