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Lifespan, longevity, and ageing

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Maximum longevity: 19 years
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Biology

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Carrion crows have a broad diet, including carcasses, eggs, insects, small vertebrates, molluscs, and even vegetables and grains in winter (4). They bury food for later consumption, and occasionally drop certain food items with hard shells, such as crabs and nuts, from a height in order to obtain the food inside (6). This crow starts to breed at three years of age. Pairs, once formed, last for life. Courtship involves mutual preening, and a rapid head-bowing display by the male (6). Breeding pairs are very territorial, and create solitary nests in trees, bushes or on cliffs (6). The nest consists of thick branches and twigs intertwined with pegs, rags, paper, bones and other odd objects, held together with mud and dung and lined with wool, hair and grass (6). Four to five bluish-green, speckled eggs are laid in April, and are incubated by the female for up to 20 days. During this time, the male brings food to his mate on the nest. In the early part of their life, chicks are fed on regurgitated food by the female. Both parents then provision them with worms and maggots, progressing to various types of meat at a later stage (6). The young will have usually fledged after 35 days, but stay close to their parents for some time (6). In winter large communal roosts of carrion crows can occur (6). This species displays behaviour known as 'anting'; individuals allow ants to crawl over their body, adopting unusual prone postures. They are also known to have a strange interest with fire, and have been seen carrying burning material to the nest, and then displaying unusual behaviour (6).
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Conservation

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No conservation action has been targeted at this species.
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Description

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The carrion crow was, until recently, considered to be a race of the same species as the hooded crow (Corvus cornix), but it is now recognised as a separate species (7). It is the same size and shape as the hooded crow, but differs in that the plumage is entirely black, with a green and bluish-purplish gloss (2). The thick black bill has a curved tip (2). Vocalisations are croaky and harsh, and somewhat 'harder' than those of the hooded crow (2); the name 'crow' is imitative of their calls (5).
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Habitat

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Occupies an extremely broad range of habitats (4).
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Range

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Occurs throughout Great Britain, south of the Great Glen in northern Scotland (7). There are two main populations globally; one is distributed throughout most of Asia, the second occurs in western Europe (4). Where the distributions of carrion and hooded crows meet, there is a zone where interbreeding takes place and hybrids occur, which have intermediate plumage (4). In Great Britain, these hybrids occur in a band roughly between Aberdeen and Glasgow (4).
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Status

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Receives general protection under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 (3), but can be trapped, shot or their eggs and nests destroyed under the terms of General Licences issued by government (7). Included in the Birds of Conservation Concern Green List (low conservation concern) (8).
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Threats

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Carrion crows are perceived as a threat to livestock, as they are believed to kill and injure young lambs and trapped sheep (4). Although they do cause some problems of this nature, the perception is greater than the reality (4), and they have been persecuted as a result for many hundreds of years.
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Status in Egypt

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Resident breeder.

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Description of Corvus corone

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De ''zwarte kraai'' ('Corvus corone') is een grote zangvogel die algemeen voorkomt in de Benelux. ==Uiterlijk== Een volwassen kraai is ongeveer 48 cm lang en weegt ongeveer 550 gram. Kraaien zijn groter dan kauwen en in tegenstelling tot de laatste helemaal zwart, vaak met een wat groenige glans over de veren. Van de ongeveer even grote roeken zijn ze te onderscheiden doordat de laatsten een kaal stuk huid aan de basis van de snavel hebben, waardoor de snavel langer lijkt. Een roeksnavel is ook lichter van kleur dan de gitzwarte kraaiensnavel.  Zwarte Kraaien 46 cm. Verenkleed geheel zwart, hetgeen het enige verschil is met Bonte Kraai. Te onderscheiden van veel grotere Raaf door geluid, rechte staart en gladde keel, en van juveniele Roek door zwaardere, minder puntige snavel en ontbreken van 'broek'. Gewoonlijk alleen of in paren, behalve op slaapplaats. Opent hard voedsel (bijvoorbeeld krabben of noten) door het van enige hoogte naar beneden te laten vallen. Gewone roep een krassend 'kraah'.
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Carrion crow

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The carrion crow (Corvus corone) is a passerine bird of the family Corvidae and the genus Corvus which is native to western Europe and the eastern Palearctic.

Taxonomy and systematics

The carrion crow was one of the many species originally described by Carl Linnaeus in his landmark 1758 10th edition of Systema Naturae, and it still bears its original name of Corvus corone.[2] The binomial name is derived from the Latin corvus, "raven",[3] and Greek κορώνη korōnē, "crow".[4]

The hooded crow, formerly regarded as a subspecies, has been split off as a separate species, and there is some discussion whether the eastern carrion crow (C. c. orientalis) is distinct enough to warrant specific status; the two taxa are well separated, and it has been proposed they could have evolved independently in the wetter, maritime regions at the opposite ends of the Eurasian landmass.[5]

Along with the hooded crow, the carrion crow occupies a similar ecological niche in Eurasia to the American crow (C. brachyrhynchos) in North America.

Description

Adult male carrion crow moulting at the Jardin des Plantes of Paris

The plumage of the carrion crow is black with a green or purple sheen, much greener than the gloss of the rook. The bill, legs and feet are also black. It can be distinguished from the common raven by its size of around 48–52 centimetres (19–20 in) in length as compared to an average of 63 centimetres (25 inches) for ravens, and from the hooded crow by its black plumage. The carrion crow has a wingspan of 84–100 centimetres (33–39 in) and weighs 400–600 grams (14 oz – 1 lb 5 oz).

There is frequent confusion between the carrion crow and the rook, another black corvid found within its range. The beak of the crow is stouter and in consequence looks shorter, and whereas in the adult rook the nostrils are bare, those of the crow are covered at all ages with bristle-like feathers. As well as this, the wings of a carrion crow are proportionally shorter and broader than those of the rook when seen in flight.[6][7]

Juvenile carrion crows can be identified by their brownish plumage and blue eyes, both of which darken to black and brown as the crow grows older.

Distribution and genetic relationship to hooded crows

A map of Europe indicating the distribution of the carrion and hooded crows on either side of a contact zone (white line) separating the two species

The carrion crow (Corvus corone) and hooded crow (Corvus cornix), including the former's slightly larger allied form or race C. c. orientalis, are two very closely related species;[8] the geographic distributions of both forms of carrion crow across Europe are illustrated in the accompanying diagram. It is believed that this distribution might have resulted from the glaciation cycles during the Pleistocene, which caused the parent population to split into isolates which subsequently re-expanded their ranges when the climate warmed causing secondary contact.[9][10]

Poelstra and coworkers sequenced almost the entire genomes of both species in populations at varying distances from the contact zone to find that the two species were genetically identical, both in their DNA and in its expression (in the form of mRNA), except for the lack of expression of a small portion (<0.28%) of the genome (situated on avian chromosome 18) in the hooded crow, which imparts the lighter plumage colouration on its torso.[9] Thus the two species can viably hybridize, and occasionally do so at the contact zone, but the all-black carrion crows on the one side of the contact zone mate almost exclusively with other all-black carrion crows, while the same occurs among the hooded crows on the other side of the contact zone.

It is therefore clear that it is only the outward appearance of the two species that inhibits hybridization.[9][10] The authors attribute this to assortative mating (rather than to ecological selection), the advantage of which is not clear, and it would lead to the rapid appearance of streams of new lineages, and possibly even species, through mutual attraction between mutants. Unnikrishnan and Akhila propose, instead, that koinophilia is a more parsimonious explanation for the resistance to hybridization across the contact zone, despite the absence of physiological, anatomical or genetic barriers to such hybridization.[9] The carrion crow is also found in the mountains and forests of Japan and also in the cities of Japan.[11]

Behaviour and ecology

In Southend-on-Sea, England
In flight
Scavenging around a dead bird in Paris, France

The rook is generally gregarious and the crow largely solitary, but rooks occasionally nest in isolated trees, and crows may feed with rooks; moreover, crows are often sociable in winter roosts. The most distinctive feature is the voice. The rook has a high-pitched kaaa, but the crow's guttural, slightly vibrant, deeper croaked kraa is distinct from any note of the rook.[12]

The carrion crow is noisy, perching on a vantage point such as a building or the top of a tree and calling three or four times in quick succession, with a slight pause between each series of croaks. During each series of calls, a crow may perform an accompanying gesture, raising its shoulders and bowing its head and neck downwards with each caw. The wing-beats are slower, more deliberate than those of the rook.[13]

Carrion crows can become tame near humans, and can often be found near areas of human activity or habitation including cities, moors, woodland, sea cliffs and farmland[6] where they compete with other social birds such as gulls, other corvids, and ducks for food in parks and gardens.

Like other species of corvid, carrion crows will actively harass predators and competitors that enter their territory or threaten them or their offspring, and will engage in group mobbing behaviour as a method to defend themselves.[14]

Intelligence

Like all corvids, carrion crows are very intelligent.[15] For example, they can discriminate between numerosities up to 30,[16] flexibly switch between rules,[17] and recognise human and crow faces.[18] Given the difference in brain architecture in crows compared to primates, these abilities suggest that their intelligence is realised as a product of convergent evolution.[15]

Diet

Though an eater of carrion of all kinds, the carrion crow will eat insects, earthworms, other invertebrates,[19] grain, fruits, seeds, nuts,[19] small mammals, amphibians, fish,[19] scraps and will also steal eggs. Crows are scavengers by nature, which is why they tend to frequent sites inhabited by humans in order to feed on their household waste. Crows will also harass birds of prey or even foxes for their kills. Crows actively hunt and occasionally co-operate with other crows to make kills, and are sometimes seen catching ducklings for food. Due to their gregarious lifestyle and defensive abilities, carrion crows have few natural predators. However, powerful raptors such as the northern goshawk, peregrine falcon, Eurasian eagle-owl and golden eagle will readily hunt them, and crows can become an important prey item locally.

Nesting

Eggs, Collection Museum Wiesbaden

The bulky stick nest is usually placed in a tall tree, but cliff ledges, old buildings and pylons may be used as well. Nests are also occasionally placed on or near the ground. The nest resembles that of the common raven, but is less bulky. The 3 to 4 brown-speckled blue or greenish eggs are incubated for 18–20 days by the female alone, who is fed by the male. The young fledge after 29–30 days.[20]

Chicks in the nest

It is not uncommon for an offspring from the previous years to stay around and help rear the new hatchlings. Instead of seeking out a mate, it looks for food and assists the parents in feeding the young.[21]

References

  1. ^ BirdLife International (2017). "Corvus corone". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2017: e.T22706016A118784397. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2017-3.RLTS.T22706016A118784397.en. Retrieved 11 November 2021.
  2. ^ Linnaeus, C (1758). Systema naturae per regna tria naturae, secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis. Tomus I. Editio decima, reformata (in Latin). Holmiae. (Laurentii Salvii). p. 105. Archived from the original on 19 March 2015. C. atro-caerulescens, cauda rotundata: rectricibus acutis.
  3. ^ "Corvus". Merriam-Webster. Retrieved 4 February 2008.
  4. ^ κορώνη. Liddell, Henry George; Scott, Robert; A Greek–English Lexicon at the Perseus Project.
  5. ^ Madge, Steve & Burn, Hilary (1994): Crows and jays: a guide to the crows, jays and magpies of the world. A&C Black, London. ISBN 0-7136-3999-7
  6. ^ a b Holden, Peter (2012). RSPB Handbook of British Birds. p. 274. ISBN 978-1-4081-2735-3.
  7. ^ Holden, Peter (2006). RSPB Handbook of British Birds. London: Tien Wah Press. p. 263. ISBN 9781405307536.
  8. ^ Parkin, David T. (2003). "Birding and DNA: species for the new millennium". Bird Study. 50 (3): 223–242. doi:10.1080/00063650309461316.
  9. ^ a b c d Poelstra, Jelmer W.; Vijay, Nagarjun; Bossu, Christen M.; et al. (2014). "The genomic landscape underlying phenotypic integrity in the face of gene flow in crows" (PDF). Science. 344 (6190): 1410–1414. Bibcode:2014Sci...344.1410P. doi:10.1126/science.1253226. ISSN 0036-8075. PMID 24948738. S2CID 14431499.
  10. ^ a b de Knijf, Peter (2014). "How carrion and hooded crows defeat Linnaeus's curse". Science. 344 (6190): 1345–1346. Bibcode:2014Sci...344.1345D. doi:10.1126/science.1255744. ISSN 0036-8075. PMID 24948724. S2CID 207790306. Further reading: [1]
  11. ^ Attenborough. D. 1998. The Life of Birds. pp.295 BBC ISBN 0563-38792-0
  12. ^ "Differences Between Crows, Ravens and Rooks – With Photos". animalwised.com. Retrieved 24 January 2022.
  13. ^ "British Garden Birds – Carrion Crow". garden-birds.co.uk. Retrieved 24 January 2022.
  14. ^ Pettifor, R. A (1990). "The effects of avian mobbing on a potential predator, the European kestrel, Falco tinnunculus". Animal Behaviour. 39 (5): 821–827. doi:10.1016/S0003-3472(05)80945-5. S2CID 53200478.
  15. ^ a b Nieder A.; et al. (2017). "Inside the corvid brain—probing the physiology of cognition in crows". Current Opinion in Behavioral Sciences. 16 (8): 8–14. doi:10.1016/j.cobeha.2017.02.005. S2CID 44291562.
  16. ^ Ditz, Helen; Nieder, Andreas (2016). "Numerosity representations in crows obey the Weber–Fechner law". Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences. 283 (1827): 20160083. doi:10.1098/rspb.2016.0083. PMC 4822466. PMID 27009227.
  17. ^ Andreas Nieder; Veit, Lena (28 November 2013). "Abstract rule neurons in the endbrain support intelligent behaviour in corvid songbirds". Nature Communications. 4: 2878. Bibcode:2013NatCo...4.2878V. doi:10.1038/ncomms3878. ISSN 2041-1723. PMID 24285080.
  18. ^ Brecht, Katharina F.; Wagener, Lysann; Ostojić, Ljerka; Clayton, Nicola S.; Nieder, Andreas (1 December 2017). "Comparing the face inversion effect in crows and humans". Journal of Comparative Physiology A. 203 (12): 1017–1027. doi:10.1007/s00359-017-1211-7. ISSN 1432-1351. PMC 5696503. PMID 28905251.
  19. ^ a b c James, Phillip. "Corvus corone (carrion crow)". Animal Diversity Web. Retrieved 18 December 2022.
  20. ^ British Trust for Ornithology (2005) Nest Record Scheme data.
  21. ^ Baglione, V.; Marcos, J. M.; Canestrari, D.; Ekman, J. (2002). "Direct fitness benefits of group living in a complex cooperative society of carrion crows, Corvus corone corone". Animal Behaviour. 64 (6): 887–893. doi:10.1006/anbe.2002.2007. S2CID 53200940.

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Carrion crow: Brief Summary

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The carrion crow (Corvus corone) is a passerine bird of the family Corvidae and the genus Corvus which is native to western Europe and the eastern Palearctic.

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