Crow Roost #BirdADay

Last night I went with some friends to see The Jerk at the Parkway Theater in Minneapolis. As we cruised down Hwy 35W in the darkness near the Wells Fargo complex, my brain registered leaves on the trees in the darkness. Then I realized…it was the crow roost.

We didn’t stop for pictures. I thought about it on the drive back, but when we were heading north the crows were whirling in the sky, something startled them. I wondered if it was one of the many great horned owls in the metro area.

Crow roost on a night they slept on the Mississippi River in downtown Minneapolis.

Crow roost photo from when they were in downtown Minneapolis three winters ago. Taken with Swarovski ATX 95mm scope, PhoneSkope case and I think this was an 6s.

Even though I didn’t get pictures last night, I still have quite a few pictures of the Minneapolis Crow Roost that I’ve taken over the years. On overcast nights, they can look very cool, especially with the city lights behind him. Birds are few and far between in the northern states, so a spectacle of thousands of crows can make for some interesting birding.

Crow with the city lights behind it.

I’m not sure every day is going to warrant an actual blog post for my #BirdADay personal challenge but the birds will for sure end up daily on my Instagram. I have one post that I was ruminating on for this month that has three birds and all three qualify as a #BirdADay. I may post them and them corral them into a blog post because that was such a fun birding day.

Another challenge I have is trying to figure out what to do with some of the cool photos and videos I have that aren’t birds. I have some really interesting swallowtail footage. Ah well, I’ll figure it out. Maybe that will be a #NotABirdADay

Anyway, thank you for following along on my little Bird A Day personal challenge for the new year.

Crow Coughing Up A Pellet

I periodically do segments on our local All Things Considered broadcast in the Twin Cities. I offered to show them the winter crow roost and the host Tom and his producer Sam were interested. You can listen here and they brought along a videographer who got some terrific footage of the crows, be sure to check it out.

We had to reschedule the recording at least once because of the cold weather. We are having the sort of winter that Ned Stark would be proud of up here and I didn't want to take them out to see the roost in sub zero weather. Yeah, I know birders are hardy and we can take it, but I find with newbies and casual birders that they really don't have as much fun and I'm not into sadomasochist birding for everyone (just a select few). I like to do it when it works with everyone's schedule and comfort level.

We finally found a day when it was in the 30s and it was a great time.

I joked with producer Sam by asking if that is how he keeps his microphone warm in winter. He said that this was for wind protection but it looks like a piece of Muppet more than a microphone.

I know crows are pretty common birds, but I do really enjoy their winter roost--thousands of crows coming in and swirling around at dusk, it's beautiful spectacle. Not quite a murmuration, but definitely lovely in its own way. And I love taking non birders out and see them be just as awed as I am (if not more so).

As we did the interview, I tried my hand at digiscoping the crows with my iPhone. I can get some arty shots, but it's still can't quite capture the majesty of the roost. However, as I was grabbing footage, I managed to get a shot of a crow coughing up a pellet--just like an owl or hawk would. Watch the crow on the far right:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bGrIpbUqkIA

Several bird species cough up pellets, just not as regularly as birds of prey. I've seen gulls, shorebirds, robins and even a scissor-tailed flycatcher do it. In theory, any bird will cough up parts of food they cannot digest from scales, exoskeletons or even berry husks. But you don't often see other birds do it. Was fun to capture the footage.

Fish Crow...man, there is a lot we don't know about this bird

As I'm going through my Florida photos choosing what to add to my official album for my Big Half Year fundraiser, I posted one of my fish crow photos. Some of you who read this blog and are not that into birds are probably wondering, "Hey, Shaz, how can you tell that's a fish crow as opposed the American crow we see all over the US." Honestly? I can't tell them apart by sight myself, but I can by call.  So I took the extra step of getting some video of the above bird so you can hear the call which is a dead give away from the American crow:

http://youtu.be/YpcTqQOjIT4

The call is pretty different.  I don't know all that much about fish crows apart from knowing I'll find them when I'm along the coast in the easter US.  I checked over at Birds of North America Online and my favorite section to check on bird profiles is "Priorities for Future Research." Boy howdy, though this bird is very common along the eastern coastal areas...there's a lot we don't know! And corvids are down right interesting to study.

I was especially surprised about how little we know about the fish crow repertoire. American crows have a crazy vocal repertoire beyond just the "caw" that most of us know and try to tune out.  But they have various types of "caws" and they make weird maraca rattles and can mimic other species (including humans). We don't know that much about the fish crow--exactly how different are they from the American crow?

Graduate students, here's a bird to study...and you could do it some place like Florida!

Tryin' To Get That Digiscoping Feelin' Again

So in an effort to get to know my new digiscoping set up better, I keep stopping out here and there to test out different settings.  Today...I had my ISO way too high and ended up with some arty shots that I kind love:

I love how eerie these bleached out crows look--something only a photographer would say when most of their photos are bad...they're ARTY!

This kind of looks like a drawing.  I did get the ISO down to 100 and got a more reasonable shot (and bird #11 for my Big Half Year).

And this would be my first official photo with my new digiscoping set up.  Once I get used to this system, I think we will get along fine. I've taken just under 800 photos with my set up and this is the first one that I thought was good enough for the blog.  I write that because I meet so many people who get a digiscoping set up and after 16 pictures, never touch it.  It takes several shots to get used to all the bells and whistles on your camera.  You should go out and practice on starlings, chickadees, Canada geese to get a feel for the system, figure out what adjustments you need for different light settings, that way you'll be ready when you go warbler watching or on that trip to Central America. I didn't expect to take over 700 hundred photos to get used to the system, but this camera has burst mode so I ended up with more shots than I bargained for even when lightly pressing the button.  But when  you have a set up, take a crap load of photos and get on a first name basis with your delete key.  That is the number one step to getting better photos: PRACTICE!

I'm desperately trying to get this in before we head to Space Coast next week.  I want a lot of these settings to be second nature so I can grab spectacular shots of spoonbills, ibises, wood storks and limpkins.

Birds and Beers coming up! And Random Crow

Just an FYI for Twin Cities peeps, there's a Birds and Beers this week on Thursday, December 13, 2012 at 6pm – 9pm at the Lion’s Tap in Eden Prairie, MN.

One of the things I love after a good snow is how crazy blue the sky can get in Minnesota.  This was the day after the snow dump, accented by one of the lovely crows that frequents our neighborhood. We live within five miles of the Minneapolis winter crow roost so quite a few pass over every morning and night.

This bird hunkered down for a little bit, dozing and periodically eating snow until a smaller flock of crows came by and it joined them. I wonder if the roost is so noisy that some crows just need a break for a nap during the day? Kind of like getting stuck at the party dorm in college.

Birdchick Podcast: #65 Eagles and Window Strikes

Interesting...do satellite transmitters harm birds? Bald eagle rehabbed by The Raptor Center was banded and the band was recovered, giving a clue as to how birds fare post wildlife rehab.

Bald eagle that was injured and is now used for public programs flies into a window at a football stadium causing public outcry from animal rights groups and highlights how dangerous windows are.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YgF6UJ5UgUs[/youtube]

Meanwhile San Fransisco approves guidelines for new construction to include bird friendly.

Terre Haute, Indiana has a Crow Committee.

Ducks Unlimited is asking hunters to purchase 2 Duck Stamps this year.  Will birders purchase 1?

Birdchick Podcast 03-04-2011

  The latest Birdchick Podcast is out.  Below are links to some of the things we talked about:

6 Terrifying Ways Crows Are Smarter Than You

Cats Killing 79% of Catbird Fledglings

One Woman Blocks Rookery from chainsaws

Jeff Foiles Duck Hunting Scandal

Herpetologists vs Ornithologists

ABA President's Message Will you answer our challenge issued in the podcast?

You can join the American Birding Association here.

Have any questions for the podcast or suggestions? Email me at sharon at birdchick dot com

  You can subscribe to this podcast on iTunes  

[audio src="http://media.blubrry.com/birdchick/p/birdchick.com/wp/podcast/birdchick-podcast-7.mp3"]

Stupid Hipster Crows

Non Birding Bill and I drove by Loring Park tonight and expected to find this:

But when we arrived there, the crow roost was bare!  The roost has moved.  As I let loose a stream of profanity as to how this affects Birds and Beers, NBB said, "You know what happened, they arrived around Thanksgiving and said, 'Oh, we were here last year, this place is all played out,' and then another crow said, 'I know this other little spot that's much quieter that no one knows about and is so cool.' See your problem is that you have hipster crows."

Indeed, the roost has officially moved to Elliot Park, not too far away, but we will not get the same view we had at last year's Birds and Beers.  We should still see crows fly in but they will most likely not stay at Loring outside of Joe's Garage.  Perhaps after it gets dark, we can caravan over to Elliot Park to see the sleeping crows?  So Birds and Beers is still on at Joe's Garage for Saturday at 4:30pm.  Sounds like we'll have more beer than birds.

January Birds and Beers at the Loring Crow Roost!

The next Birds and Beers is on January 22, 2011 at 4:30pm at Joe’s Garage.  This is the one where we watch the millions of crows fly into Loring Park!

I'm looking forward to this one, the crows at Loring Park are a spectacular sight and last year's gathering was the biggest Birds and Beers we've ever had!  The only downside is that we have to pay for parking for this event but we get a spectacular show in exchange. Birds and Beers is an informal gathering of birders of all abilities–if you’re interested in birds, you’re invited. You can meet other birders–maybe find a carpool buddy, ask about where to find target birds, share cool research projects you might be working on, ask a bird feeding question, share life lists, share some digiscoping tips, promote your blog–the sky is the limit. It’s low key and it’s fun.

Non Birding Bill and I stopped by Joe's Garage the day after Thanksgiving to check out the crow roost and even took a moment to walk beneath the crows in the dark.  Loring is a busy city park, these birds are used to a bit of pedestrian traffic.  As we walked through, one of the flocks abandon their tree.  For a second I was worried that we startled them but then NBB said, "That doesn't look like a crow..."

Sure enough, it was a great horned owl passing through the roost, no doubt looking for a vulnerable crow for a meal.  Hope you can make it and again this is a great way to spend a Saturday afternoon and meet some new birding friends, promote your bird club or group.

The Crow: A Reappraisal

NBB's Guide to the Bird You Saw: Crows

Okay, so hopefully you've gotten the identification of Sparrow down pat. If not, there's no hope for you, and you're destined to lead a lonely, sheltered life, fearing the companionship of your fellow man. Which, ironically, makes you a perfect candidate to be a bird watcher. But I kid the birders.

Let us now move briskly on to the other type of bird you just saw, the Crow. In contrast to the Sparrow, which is vile, corrupt mockery of all that is righteous in the world but which is extremely popular—the Internet Explorer 6 of birds, if you will—the Crow is, in fact, a fairly awesome bird which people hate. People hate Crows so much you'd think they horked in the back of their car, or had a reality show.

This is not an unreasonable reaction. Crows have several things working against them, the first being is that while Crows are cool, they know it. Crows don't walk, they strut, making sure that you notice them without acting like they're making sure you notice them. I don't think that anyone would disagree that Crows have what Vice-Principals the world over would describe as "an attitude problem," before adding "Mister" with a very significant period at the end, because Crows are basically the teenagers of the bird world. You'll often find them hanging around behind feeders, sneaking a smoke. Chase them off and they'll simply fly off—slooooowly—to the nearest tree, glaring at you without looking like they're glaring at you. You can almost hear them mutter "bogus," and "whut-evah, grand-dad."

Yeah, I'll get right on that. Watch me go. Zoom.

I can hear my wife cringing from across town as I write this, because she can't stand anthropomorphization of animals. But it doesn't really apply to Crows, because I feel they are so very human, which is, again, part of the reason why people don't like them. They're cooperative, family-based, and part of the reason they've been so successful is that they've adapted to humanity, eating the roadkill (created by us) and garbage (likewise).

So, it can be easy to hate on Crows, but nonetheless I urge you take another look at them: I honestly really like them. Crows can be a lot of fun to watch, provided they don't know you're watching them: they play pass-the-stick and have this weird cartwheeling game they play in the park in the winter. And winter is the best time to watch crows, because that's when they lose some of their smugness and are, like the rest of us, just trying to get from A to B. Their strut becomes a trudge as they try to make their way through the snow, and they'll hang in the trees, wrapped in their feathers like trench coats. They hang out at my bus stop, probaby waiting for the cross-town to take them to the U. campus, where they are no-doubt studying Russian Formalism and smoking hand-rolled cigarettes. And as we stand there, both freezing our butts off, they'll shake off the snow with a shudder as if to say "this weather is b.s."

Yes, yes it is.

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Sharon tells me that the Crows we have around our house are notoriously hard to take pictures of (again, like teenagers), so your best bet is try try and snap a picture with a motion-sensitive camera like the  Wingscapes Birdcam. Both items are available at the Birdchick’s OpenSky Store, and 20% of the profits are donated to the ABA’s kids programs.

As an added bonus, if you enter the coupon code Sharon1009, you’ll get an additional 10% off your OpenSky order.