hello jim.

it is possible that the crow that exhibited begging behavior
was a female begging food from her mate. this is not uncommon
for many species of birds when the pair is re-establishing a
pair bond.

white-crowned sparrows are known to sing at night.

hope this helps,

Deborah Wisti-Peterson email:nyneve at u.washington.edu
Department of Zoology, University of Washington, Seattle, Wash, USA
Visit me on the web: http://students.washington.edu/~nyneve/
<><><>Graduate School: it's not just a job, it's an indenture!<><><>


On Fri, 21 Apr 2000, Jim McCoy wrote:

>
> Q1: Yesterday I watched a crow begging from another, doing the classic
> rapid wing
> flutter that fledgling birds use to do to get food. Though the feeding
> seems like it
> could be courtship, the begging does not seem right. Does this mean that a
> year-old
> bird is still taking food from its parent?
>
> Q2: I frequently leave work late at night, and I have heard a single
> white-crowned
> sparrow singing long after dark (between 9 and midnight) on five separate
> occasions.
> Though all five were relatively close together, I suspect by their
> separation of up to
> 150 yards or more that I am listening to at least two individuals, and
> possibly three.
> Is this typical of white-crowned sparrows? Has anyone seen any research to
> suggest
> that a bird could be fooled by a well-lit office park into thinking that
> dawn was
> approaching? I'd be particularly interested to know whether people in rural
> locations
> with very little ambient light have white-crowned sparrows singing at night.
>
> Jim McCoy
> jfmccoy at earthlink.net
> Redmond, WA
>
>
>