A week or so ago as I came across one of the foot bridges from the UW New
Baseball park in to the E-5 (gravel lot) I saw a dead crow in the brush
next to the foot bridge. Since I had a plastic bag with me I decided to
see what crows would do with their dead comrade. Oh, yes, E-5 is a MAJOR
roost area for crows at this time of the year, after Foster Island.
Anyway, within 2-3 steps of carrying the dead crow, the crows in the tree
to my left changed their cawing to a very different cry, and soon every
crow that was near took up this cry. As I proceeded further in to the lot,
I soon placed the crow on one of the cement parking dividers, the entire
flock of crows took in to the air and began circling clock-wise, still
calling their lament. At this moment I felt like I was in Hitchcock's
film the Birds, I was so scared with 400+ crows circling 20-30 feet above
me that I expected them to start pecking and swooping at me, but, they did
not, they just continued to circle and cry for the fallen brother.

After a few more seconds of eternity I was far enough along in the lot to
now look back at the what was now taking place. ALL the crows came to the
ground and landed in a triangular formation facing the dead crow, there
was now silence. .
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The crows nearist the dead one would hop up on to the cement divider, then
hop off, then another one would follow. It was several minutes before the
crows at a further distance from the dead one would begin to display
territorial behavior for space.


Deborah Lisa Raymond
Seattle, WA