American Crow

It is one of several species of corvid that are entirely black, though it can be distinguished from the other two such birds in its range—from the Common Raven by size and behavior and from the Fish Crow by call .

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The American Crow is classified as Least Concern. Does not qualify for a more at risk category. Widespread and abundant taxa are included in this category.

The American Crow is known for feasting on garbage, carrion, crops, and livestock, but these intelligent birds eat pests, clean up road kill, and raise big families. The American Crow is not a particularly well-loved bird. Crows are renowned for getting into garbage, eating carrion and road kill, destroying crops, killing livestock, and being a noisy nuisance. Some consider them a bad omen. But crows are not the bad luck birds we think they are. More

The American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos) is a large passerine bird species of the family Corvidae. It is a common bird found throughout much of North America. In the interior of the continent south of the Arctic, it is simply "the crow" as no other such birds occur there on any regular basis. It is one of several species of corvid that are entirely black, though it can be distinguished from the other two such birds in its range—from the Common Raven (C. More

The American Crow is native to Mexico, Canada and the United States. This bird has been seen in Saint Pierre as well. The large range of this species of bird is believed to be as much as 11 million square kilometers. In terms of population, the American Crow is thought to be quite significant and include as many as 31 million individual birds. There is currently no reason to think that the population of the American Crow will decline soon. More

The American crow, Corvus brachyrhynchos, is a large passerine (perching bird) belonging to the family Corvidae (crows and jays), and, along with a few primates, has made us re-think our own species’ so-called uniqueness within the animal kingdom as the only toolmakers and problems solvers. Jet-black to purplish in color, sleek and nimble in the air, crows have a special place in human history. Yet they are maddeningly elusive and wary. More

The American crow is black all over including the bill and legs. When a crow molts and gets new feathers the old feathers may appear to be brownish and/or scaly in comparison with the new glossy black feathers. American Crows have a unique flight style which consists of periodic graceful flapping of their wings that is only periodically broken up with a glide. More

American Crows are familiar over much of the continent: large, intelligent, all-black birds with hoarse, cawing voices. They are common sights in treetops, fields, and roadsides, and in habitats ranging from open woods and empty beaches to town centers. They usually feed on the ground and eat almost anything – typically earthworms, insects and other small animals, seeds, and fruit but also garbage, carrion, and chicks they rob from nests. More

The American Crow was described by Christian Ludwig Brehm in 1822. Its scientific name means literally "short-billed crow", from Ancient Greek brachy- (βραχυ-) "short-" and rhynchos (ρυνχος) "bill". The Northwestern Crow (C. caurinus) is very closely related to the American Crow. Its ancestors became separated by Ice Age glaciation west of the Rocky Mountains. It is endemic to Pacific temperate rain forests where it all but replaces the American Crow. Only in the Seattle region do they co-occur to any extent. More

Northwest is smaller than the American Crow and has a quicker wing-beat. It replaces the American Crow on the narrow northwestern coast strip. There is apparently some integration with the American Crow in the Puget Sound area, hence some believe they may be conspecific. Voice: khaaa or khaaw. Usually more resonant than Common Crow's caw. Also, cowp-cowp-cowp. Range: Northwest coast. Map . Habitat: Near tidewater, shores. More

Find American crow information at Animal Diversity Web American crow = Corvus brachyrhynchos What do they look like? - Mass 450 g (average) (15.84 oz) Adult American crows are completely black birds weighing on average 450 g. The feathers have a glossy and slightly iridescent look. Crows have strong legs and toes. More

Midwinter distribution of the American Crow in New York state . Ecol. 19: 264-275. Emlen, J. T., Jr. 1940. The mid-winter distribution of the crow in California. Condor 42: 287-294. Emlen, J. T., Jr. 1942. Notes on a nesting colony of western crows. Bird-Banding 13: 143-154. Everding, S. and R. Montgomerie 2000. Movements and habitat use of the Torresian Crow in a subtropical suburban environment. Emu 100(3): 192-198. Finley, K. J. 1992. Crows say caw. More

distribution of the American Crow in New York State, Ecology 19: 264-275). The big difference is that they were roosting 3 miles south of town then and are roosting smack in downtown Auburn today. Any increase in size of the roost would be imperceptible, compared to the change of locale. More

The American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos) is a jet-black bird, closely related to the raven. The crow's call sounds like "caw." This social bird sometimes gathers in flocks of many hundreds of birds. When large groups of crows are feeding, there will often be one or two "sentinels" who are on the lookout for danger while the others eat. Anatomy: The crow is an all-black bird about 18-22 inches (45-56 cm) long. It has a square-shaped tail and pointed wings. More

American Crow has adapted to a great variety of human-altered land-scapes, ranging from farms, pastures, and woodlots, to suburbs and urban centers. Although solitary or seen in pairs much of the time, crows can also be gregarious; during the fall and winter they may gather in very large roosts near a source of food. More

The American Crow, also called the Common Crow, is a bird that most people see every day. It grows up to 21 inches long and every part of its body is black. American Crows can also be identified by their fan-shaped tail. This bird lives just about everywhere, including woods, fields, riversides, parks, and towns. American Crows are known to be very intelligent birds, and can work out solutions to many problems, as well as count. More

An American Crow looks for food at Crissy Field. Natural History: The American Crow eats nuts, fruits, insects, bird eggs, nestlings, carrion, garbage - after which it ejects pellets. Nesting in somewhat of colonies, it builds nests of stick platforms lined with mud and vegetation, usually in trees. Nesting season is from March to July. This species is very gregarious in winter. General Distribution: In the Presidio, this bird is found in all forested areas and lawns. More

American crow has completely black plumage, but we can se purplish gleam in beautiful light. It has fan-shaped tail. It has long, heavy black bill, slightly hooked at the tip. Eyes are dark brown. Legs and feet are strong and black. Both sexes are similar, with male slightly larger than female. Juvenile resembles to adult, but it lacks glossy feathers. Wing and tail feathers become brownish during the first year. They have blue eyes. More

HABITAT AND RANGE: American Crows are native to the Nearctic region all over North America. They can be found in the lower part of Canada and through the continental United States. Crows prefer to live in open areas with some nearby trees or in suburban neighborhoods and rural parks. PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS: Adult American crows are completely black birds weighing on average 450 g. The feathers have a glossy and slightly iridescent look. More

Picture of Corvus brachyrhynchos above has been licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike.
Original source: Petr Baum
Author: Petr Baum
Permission: Some rights reserved
Order : Passeriformes
Family : Corvidae
Genus : Corvus
Species : brachyrhynchos
Authority : Brehm, 1822