The Captivating Crow

Last year I had the opportunity to go and stay in Thane, Mumbai for a whole year. I haven’t lived in India since I left my wonderful country in 1964, 56 years ago. I was thrilled to be back, albeit for one year and was determined to experience new things that can only be experienced in India.

Our India home is at the base of Yeoor Hills, part of the Sanjay Gandhi National Park, and often referred to as ‘Mumbai's National Park’, and walking distance to the beautiful Upvan Lake. We always hear about Mumbai’s hot and humid weather, but that is a generalisation. From November until March, the weather in Maharashtra is just glorious, as the Monsoon (rainy season) has just finished so the trees are washed by the rain and are clean and lush green. The new growth of plants has started. Beautiful birds are coming out of their nests making sweet chirping sounds; there is such a diverse variety of birds here and of course their diverse sounds. Owing to the location of our Mumbai home, we are in the midst of bird life and their songs all the time. It feels as though nature has woken up after the rains and is excited for the new season of growth and greenery.

When we go up to Yeoor Hills for a walk, I remember the song from ‘A Sound of Music:

The hills are alive with the sound of music,

My heart wants to beat like the wings of the birds

That rise from the lake to the trees

My heart wants to laugh like a brook

When it trips and falls over stones on its way

I go to the hills when my heart is lonely

I know I will hear what I have heard before

My heart will be blessed with the sound of music

And I will sing once more.

I have had such a wonderful three months of Mumbai’s winter and got so fond of watching those beautiful birds and their behaviour. Looking at what they do in their daily lives. I wanted to share my experiences of bird watching with you all. I saw crows, mynas (blackbirds, sparrows, barbets, bats, kites, koels, pigeons and so many others.

In fact I got very fond of one crow couple. They would fly to the downstairs of our building. I actually believe I became friends with them. They were very brave even if my son and I were walking around. They would look at us while hopping around and and playing. Sometimes they would be hanging out in a big group of their crow friends and having loud and boisterous discussions. My son is a keen birdwatcher, so would tell me what he knows about crows and we would try to tell whether they were having an intellectual discussion or debating a situation they were having - we were creatively interpreting their caw-caws.

I got so intrigued by the crow couple that I started looking for books and online content about crows. Crows, Ravens, Rooks Jackdaws, Jays and Magpies are all considered part of the crow family, which has over 120 species! I used to think a crow is a crow is a crow - but now I know they are a much more sophisticated bird type than that. Crows are medium to large size with strong scaly feet and curved down bills. The crow family is found all over the world except for the polar ice caps. They have been living on earth for about 17 million years; the ‘Corvid’ fossil was found in Europe . Since the crow is part of the corvid family, the crow must also have been around for millions of years. Most crows have mainly black or blue coloured plumage, although some are black and white. The male and female crows are similar in size and colour and mostly do not migrate. The crow that we are most used familiar with is called the ‘Carion’ crow.

Crows live in communities and have a strong social hierarchy. The young crows take part in social games such as ‘Follow the Leader’ and ‘King of the mountain’. They can often be seen passing and balancing sticks. It is said that these group games help them to become adaptable and increase their survival rate too. They also help and are there for each other in breeding season.

Even though they live in communities and play games, crows can be aggressive too. They can attack anything that threatens their nests, whether it is a dog, a cat, a raven or a bird of prey. They are fiercely protective of their nests, which they make out of anything they can find: twis, rags, bones, etc.

I remember one crow used to come to my mother-in-law’s kitchen every day at lunchtime for many many years, as she fed him once and gave him water and that turned into a habit for the both of them. He arrived at the same time every day; he would caw-caw, eat, drink and fly away satisfied, only to be back the very next day to greet my mother-in-law again. He was fully black and made a hoarse cawing sound to announce his arrival.

They are quite fearless birds, these crows. They are happy to eat grains but also dead animals. They are happy to steal other birds’ eggs and even chicks. They have been observed to hide food away for the next time it is needed and easily find the hiding spot. When they are chicks however, they are blind, featherless and helpless and require extensive parental care. Once they are mature and independent however, they are bold and ready to take on the world.

Crows are social and very community minded. They often roost in large groups which frightens other birds away and gives them protection from the likes of hawks and owls. Even crows from outside the family will come and help a crow if they are in trouble, if they hear a distress call.

Crows as well as their relatives the ravens, magpies and jays, are really quite intelligent and comparable to a 7 year old human being, which given their size of brain is quite remarkable. They also have powerful memories. These birds live very happily in human dominated areas. They can recognise and remember individual human faces very well, whether it is those they are fond of, or those that have caused them harm. I learnt so much about crows by watching them everyday. They also got to know my son and I and we were slowly becoming friends, but now I have taken a trip to the UK; I wonder if they will remember me when I head back there in the summer.

Could one keep a crow as a pet? I think not. Crows need to be with other crows, given their community spirit. Also, many cultures have superstitions about crows and many consider them to be a bad omen especially if they enter your house; so imagine if a friend came over for tea and your pet crow greeted them at the door with a caw-caw? You may lose your friends quite rapidly, ha ha.

In India there are many good, bad and funny superstitions attached to the crow. When I was small if a crow caw-caw’ed sitting on the roof of our house, my mother used to say we are going to have guests. I honestly don’t recall how accurate this prediction of the crow was.

The wonderful crow, do pay it some special attention the next time you see one...