Red in beak and claw

[rustydog]

Every morning at 7:45, I walk from my office to the building where my class meets, and I pass through a square with a lot of tall, old oak and pine trees. It's very pretty, and with the upper story of 150-year-old trees and understory of bushes and small landscaping trees, there's a good amount of urban wildlife. Lots of squirrels and birds, the

Comments

[nutmeg3]

Cats in boxes always make me smile.

That's really cool and incredible about the hunting crow, though I also feel sad for the poor little sparrow. Nature is so frelling amazing.

[rustydog]

It really is! Especially stuff we usually only get to see on nature programs. :)

[anodyna]

I had no idea crows were carnivores, gah! But now that I've looked it up, I learned this interesting bit about them also:

Crows and all members of the family Corvidae will store excess food. Crows sometimes will bury food in the the yard and cover it with leaves or grass. They also hide food in trees or rain gutters, or another spot. Like squirrels, crows will retreive the stored food when needed.

I'm imagining crows lurking around our porches and planting boxes the way squirrels do, burying stuff and/or coming back to dig it up later. Why does it seem more creepy when it's crows? I blame Hitchcock.

Your photos are so lovely--did you plan it that they would be red-blue-yellow?

[rustydog]

I think I knew theoretically that crows sometimes eat fresh meat, but I've only ever seen crows being scavengers. Active hunting right in front of me! Holy moly! That's so interesting about the food storing - I didn't know!

Why does it seem more creepy when it's crows? I blame Hitchcock.

I wrote a research paper as a sample for my students on the topic of Corvids in Myth and Folklore, and it was interesting how many examples I found in Western culture of crows/ravens as harbingers of death and war. It makes sense, but I hadn't realized it was so pervasive. It's almost like we've got it in our genes to find crows creepy.

Thank you re: the photos! I didn't plan the color sequence, but now that you mention it, maybe that's why I found it pleasing. :)

[phoenix64]

I can't help but feel a little sad for the sparrow, but I think it would have been neat to see that hunt as well.

[rustydog]

It was a little like watching nature shows, where you know the lioness has to eat, but you're also kind of rooting for the gazelle. But exciting to see something I've never seen live before! I've seen a cat catch a field mouse, but other than that it's really rare to actually witness an animal hunting and killing, in my experience.

[deaver]

The peach blossoms are so great - I can almost feel how soft they would be to touch.

Also love the two animal pictures. Who can resist a cat in a box or a happy smiling dog?

[rustydog]

The peach blossoms were there at *just* the right time (or I was there at the right time, I guess!) and they really are lovely and delicate.

That mop of a dog! He's kind of a nuisance, always coming across the road to jump on us, but he does pose for pictures pretty well. :)

[teleri025]

It's always wild to see nature do the hunting thing. My last drive home from St. Louis I saw a hawk pluck another bird out of the air and it was just amazing. I had to pull over and watch.

[rustydog]

Cool! It really is amazing. In a lot of observations of nature, I've rarely gotten to see the kill.