Biological Papers. 267 



486. Corvus caurinus Baird. Northwest crow. Almost as common as the 

 common blackbirds in the eastern states, but confines its wander- 

 ings principally to the coast districts of the Pacific and inhabiting 

 the islands off the coast also. They remain in the region through- 

 out the year. It is believed safe to say that there are 100,000 of 

 these birds in the region. 



Description: This crow resembles the crow of the eastern states; but is 

 smaller and smarter. In general its plumage is all black, but glossed with 

 dull violet on upper parts. 



Nest: In a crotch of some tree. It is made of fine sticks and mud, and 

 is lined with the inner fibers of cedar bark. Eggs usually 5 to 8, ranging 

 in color from olive buff to pale bluish green, also more or less spotted with 

 gray and brown. 



This crow will go into the hen house and steal all the eggs and little 

 chickens. It will come in the house and steal even off of the table where 

 cooking is going on if the windows and doors are open. One crow watches 

 while the rest steal. A coarse "caw" is a warning that there is danger. 

 They are hard to shoot, especially in an Indian village, because they will 

 always do their thieving near some house and will fly close to the house in 

 leaving the premises. Being suspicious, they are also hard to poison. When 

 anything as bait is put out they will fly around it and look at it; then one 

 or two will taste it and fly away to some high place and await the effects. 

 If no evil comes from eating the bait, or suspicious morsels, the testers will 

 fly back and eat of it again; then all the crows will come and partake of 

 the food. Consequently, when trying to poison this bird, the settler puts 

 out bait unpoisoned several times till the crows get used to eating the cer- 

 tain food in the certain place. Then he takes the same kind of food and 

 mixes poison with it and gives it to them, and they unsuspecting, eat it all 

 and pay the penalty. But the crow is hard to kill even with poison. I took 

 the Pacific sardine (smelt) and poured a dropper full of carbolic acid down 

 the throat of each fish till I had a common pail of such "doctored" bait. 

 This I put out for the crows, and they ate every fish and then sat on the 

 fence waiting for more smelt fish. Not one bird was killed with the acid. 

 Again I used arsenic with no better effect— the birds sat on the hillside and 

 cawed; that was all. Again our agency doctor, Charles L. Woods, of Neah 

 Bay, tried all the poisons in our government medical supplies on these birds, 

 but with no deadly effect. Strychnine only would kill them. In stealing, 

 one bird would draw the attention of the watcher while the other bird would 

 snatch the coveted morsel. The same is true of their robbing a hen of her 

 chickens. One crow would chase the hen while the other (or others) would 

 seize upon the little ones. Also, in stealing feed out of the chicken trough 

 in the hen yard, some of the crows would chase the chickens while the 

 others snatched up the bits of bread and other morsels. In catching fish 

 the crow will dart into the wave, the same as the gull does, and snatch up 

 a fish; no doubt, having learned this trait from the gulls. The crow also 

 shows his scheming ability in his securing the meat of the clam. He finds 

 a clam on the beach, probably washed up by the wave. Immediately he 

 seizes it and flies high up in the air over some hard surface with it. He 

 drops it to break it open, then darts down with the speed of an arrow to 

 get it before a sister crow gets it. 



Family ICTERID^: Blackbirds, Orioles, etc. 

 Genus Sturnella. 

 5016. Sturnella magna neglecta Aug. Western meadow lark. Common, 

 but seldom mates and nests. Only a few times was it ever heard 

 to sing. It is a regular migrant. 

 Description: Color of plumage similar to that of the Eastern meadow 

 lark. Crescent on breast and spotting on sides black; yellow of throat 

 spreading over cheeks; upper parts grayish brown streaked with buff and 

 barred with black; under parts yellow. Length of bird 8. 



