Hi Carl, Chis and Tweets

Three or four years ago we were in our family room and the lights flickered.
Then the local crow group started a major exercise in being upset. We looked
out and a neighbor said a crow was on the ground. I went out and checked -
it had apparently gotten crossed up with the power lines along our fence and
both feet were burned off. It was dead, and the crows were making a racket
over it. When I gently picked it up and looked at the feet and then placed
it back down on the ground the crows immediately quieted down and left the
area.

Crow behavior is always really interesting.

Brian H. Bell
Woodinville Wa
mail to bell asoc at iso media dot com

----- Original Message -----
From: "Chris Tonra" <cm.tonra at gmail.com>
To: <tweeters at u.washington.edu>
Sent: Thursday, June 28, 2012 4:15 PM
Subject: [Tweeters] re: Subject: Crows in mourning?


> Hi Carl,
>
> This is a very interesting behavior I have observed before as well,
> not only in crows, but in Black-billed Magpies as well.
>>From what I have heard this behavior serves as a social exchange of
> information, whereby everyone becomes aware of a dead member in the
> group's social hierarchy and can begin to adjust dominance
> relationships accordingly.
>
> Some corvid biologist would probably have a better answer, but either
> way a very neat thing to observe! (though not for one of the crows,
> unfortunately).
>
> Good Birding,
>
> Chris Tonra
> Port Angeles
> cm.tonra at gmail.com
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