Where are the crows?

[redhawk0]

Where I deer hunt in Mid-NH we have many hundreds of crows that roost, play, feed in the area. It's not uncommon to see 300+ on any given day during the Fall seasons.

redhawk

[Slugster]

I've lost 3 hives and gained about a hundred crows this winter. Seems a poor trade.

[rickt300]

As for local crow populations I have four resident crows that keep the hawks hopping and in the spring I look forward to the gaggle that come in raising cane for a few weeks.

[redhawk0]

As for local crow populations I have four resident crows that keep the hawks hopping and in the spring I look forward to the gaggle that come in raising cane for a few weeks.

Don't you mean "murder"?

[EDIT] - OK...my chain-yank comment above got me to thinking about where this originated....here is a link I came across that I thought was interesting.

https://bigthink.com/life/why-group-murder-of-crows/

redhawk

[John Wayne]

Yes, the Boy Scouts were conservationists long before it became "cool".
JW

[dale2242]

There are plenty of crows here in SW Oregon.
If I broadcast Crow Fight on my Fox Pro they come in flocks.

[Eddie Southgate]

All chasing Jax Teller and his dad's '46 Knucklehead.

[versa-06]

I think they all came to the south west portion of Va. -06

[barrabruce]

Haven’t you all seen Alfred Hitchcock’s "The Birds"

[pworley1]

The crow population is on the increase in east Mississippi. They can clean a fruit tree or pecan tree in a day. You are welcome to come and get them if you want them back.

[R-71]

We have giant murders of them up my way, 1000s flying to roost at sunset. We have spring and fall seasons but I doubt anyone hunts them.

[35 Rem]

Haven’t you all seen Alfred Hitchcock’s "The Birds"

Every time I watch that movie, I get all worked up hoping it will really happen someday! What a joy that would be for an old, deprived shotgunner. Two pump shotguns and a large chest of shells on the tailgate of my pickup..........

[SoonerEd]

I use to hunt them in Ft Cobb, Oklahoma where millions would migrate to and roost over the winter. They roosted in the state park and destroyed the park. They opened the state park up for shooting to drive them out of the park. They succeeded and then they disbursed. Have not found any roosts like that since.

[BK7saum]

They're numbers dropped here during West Nile virus and I think the GMO corn may not be helping. Have you seen the youtube videos of Crows killing newborn calves. They poke the calf's eyes out and then go for the tongue[B]. They constantly harass the hawks here particularly young hawks. They pull the tail feathers out so the hawk can't steer or fly well and then close in for the kill. I have seen this once and broke up the murder scene by picking one off. The hawk got away. I've watched them steal a mourning doves eggs. The dove did her best but lost that battle.
JW

I have never seen or heard of crows plucking out calves eyes and killing them until you posted. Not sure about ravens, as I am unfamiliar with them. I have, however, witnessed numerous times black vultures or Mexican vultures attacking and killing newborn calves by going for the eyes, anus and navel. I briefly looked for the youtube videos mentioned but did not come across them yet.

I have to wonder if crows have been given a bad rap by the less knowledgeable in this case. The Mexican vultures are small, slightly larger than a crow and all black. They are bad news around a livestock ranch and will definitely kill newborn livestock when the opportunity presents. I have witnessed them harass a cow trying to calve and start eating on her when weak and down, before the calf is born as well.

The turkey vultures are not a problem, they only eat carrion, and do not harass live animals.

Sorry for the derail, the comment about crows and livestock caught my attention. Just speaking from experience.

I did find some articles, but no videos yet about crows killing livestock in Britain, Scotland, and Wales, but still have not found any reference to the American crow attacking livestock. So consider my post related to personal experience regarding the American Crow. As the OP was from Sulphur Springs,TX, i was considering this in a local context and not worldwide.

[Shopdog]

There's an old notion or strategy when Turkey hunting that goes along the lines;

Hit your caller a few times and then....throw it in the truck.

Every spring it seems I do that. Not in the truck though. No,I'll sit on the back porch and hit an old box caller a few licks and finish my coffee. Then when Turkey season roles around... well they're in the back yard. The very same thing with crows....

If you hit a crow caller... or better,use two different style calls... and do it in the morning. Maybe not every day,every cpl days. Well,watch what happens over time. We don't have flocks here but every cpl days there's a 1/2 dz that come by for a morning visit.

[dverna]

Where are the crows?

Always just out of range, no matter what you brang out to have a poke at them.

Reminds of my first dedicated crow shoot. I was young and stupid. Well armed with the .22 Anschutz my dad had given me. Loaded up with the cheapest .22 HP's. Gun was dead on at 50 yards.

Set up a fake owl about 100 yards out with some bait around it. Owl and bait in a valley and I settled into my "sniper spot" on the hill. The damn crows squawked up a chorus but stayed in the trees about 150 yards out. I got impatient, aimed about 12" above one "victim" and let fly. Zilch. Not even close to enough hold over.

I think the pricks laughed at me in crow speak.

[Texas by God]

They will tell every living thing in a square mile when they’ve found an owl or hawk!
I once saw an angry mama mockingbird run a crow off- it was karma, hilarious to me!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[compass will]

In central florida, I watched a constant stream of them flying east. This went on for weeks. The thing about where i live is that you can't go more than 100 miles east or west, and you hit salt water. No idea where they were going. But my resident crows stayed here around my neighborhood.

Sent from my SM-S916U using Tapatalk

[Schreck5]

Another of the 'black' birds I haven't seen as much is the red wing black birds. But plenty of hawks. Will hawks chase red wings and crows away?

[M-Tecs]

Another of the 'black' birds I haven't seen as much is the red wing black birds. But plenty of hawks. Will hawks chase red wings and crows away?

No but crows are hard on the chicks.