Whichever of the noisy, omnipresent black birds we have here in Portland (we believe it’s ravens, please correct us if we’re wrong), they are always a reminder that bit of wild nature still exist in the midst of our busy city lives.
While their call may not be the most mellifluous sound you ever heard, and there are theories out there that they may have something to do with the declining numbers of songbirds, there’s one thing you can’t take away from them: They know not only how to live among us humans, but to use our technology for their own purposes–in ways that are pretty amazing, actually.
Here’s a youtube clip of some pretty clever crows using cars as giant rolling nutcrackers–even refining the technique to work with crosswalks and traffic signals:
How did they come upon this knowledge? Probably just a coincidence the first time, but to put two and two together like that and actually plan that outcome is . . . well, it’s beyond anything we’d ever think possible for a bird, put it that way.
There are lots more such clips on youtube, Like this one where a crow uses bread (which, mind you, he could just as well eat himself) to catch a fish (looks like a Bluegill to us).
Kind of makes you wonder just who we have living among us, doesn’t it?
