268 BULLETIN 191, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM 



digestive tract proved to be so deeply dyed a dark red that it appeared 

 to show that, for some time at least, elderberries had been the chief 

 food of the bird." 



Behavior. — There is little to be said about the behavior of the western 

 crow, which does not differ materially from that of its eastern relative. 

 It is the same clever, sagacious bird, wary when in danger and tame 

 where it feels secure. Ridgway (1877) saw three individuals at a stage 

 station in Nevada that "walked unconcernedly about the door-yard with 

 the familiarity of tame pigeons, merely hopping to one side when ap- 

 proached too closely." On the other hand, Henshaw (1875), in Arizona, 

 found them "quite numerous, associating freely with, and apparently 

 the boon companions of the ravens. Yet, even here, I found that they 

 had lost little of their traditional shyness, and it was some time ere I 

 procured a specimen. Gun in hand, I found no difficulty in approaching 

 the trees where sat the ravens, looking down upon me with a comical 

 glance of wonder, tinged with a slight suspicion that all was not just 

 as it should be. But the crows had long before taken the alarm, and 

 made themselves scarce, and from some secure perch sent back their 

 warning caws, given, as it appeared to me, with more than the usual 

 earnestness, as though deprecating the stupidity of their big cousins," 



Enemies. — Probably western crows occasionally attack hawks or owls, 

 just as the eastern birds do ; and sometimes the tables are turned. 

 Joseph Mailliard (1908) tells of a pair of Cooper's hawks attacking a 

 flock of crows that were quietly perched in the tops of some dead trees. 

 The hawks did some good team work, one attacking from above and one 

 from below, but the crows were too alert and no serious damage was 

 done before Mr. Mailliard shot both of the hawks. 



Fall. — Western crows wander about more or less in fall and winter, 

 and there is a limited migration from some parts of the breeding range, 

 a gradual southward drift that extends the range of the subspecies some- 

 what south of its summer range. There is probably, also, a retreat 

 from some of the higher altitudes down into the valleys and about the 

 ranches in search of food, and perhaps a coastwise trend. Theed Pearse 

 tells me that some cross over from the mainland to Vancouver Island, 

 where they associate with the northwest crow (caurinus). The two can 

 be easily recognized by their voices. 



Joseph Mailliard (1927) mentions a migratory movement in Modoc 

 County, Calif. : "In September, 1925, the crows gathered as they had 

 in the previous year. The number seemed to reach the maximum about 

 September 23, when I estimated the size of the band to be in the 

 neighborhood of 1,000 individuals, all feeding in the stubble field back 

 of our quarters. Ten days after this, small numbers were noted mov- 



