>I received a message that a Snowy Owl spent Sunday afternoon, November
>3rd, on Beacon Hill in Seattle near the Veterans' Hospital. It was
>photographed at close range but left its perch after nightfall and has not
>been seen since. The ex-location was the roof of a garage behind 4618
>13th Avenue South, near the corner of South Alaska. Crows were giving it
>a hard time. Maybe it's still around the neighborhood, and still being
>mobbed, which might make it possible to find it again.
>
>Hal Opperman

I wonder what it would be like to live in a world with a fewer crows.
Every raptor I see nowadays has one or more crows on it; just this
afternoon a Sharp-shin came over my office window, and out of the corner of
my eye I saw a crow approaching at flank speed; they cartwheeled off in the
distance. Now and then you see them drive away a bird entirely; I recall a
Cattle Egret at Montlake Fill a few years ago. Has anyone seen any of
these Snowies actually driven away by crows? It would be interesting to
document that phenomenon further (not that we can do anything about it but
gnash our teeth and smite our brows in frustration).

I will admit that I see a lot more raptors now that I know what to look and
listen for in the crow community.

Dennis Paulson, Director phone 206-756-3798
Slater Museum of Natural History fax 206-756-3352
University of Puget Sound e-mail dpaulson at ups.edu
Tacoma, WA 98416