206 Zerega on the Northern Piange of the Fish Croio. 



doubt that one third of the Crows that fly about the Lower Bay of 

 New York are C. ossifragus. This remark may at first seem ex- 

 travagant, but it is nevertheless true, as may be seen from the fact 

 that, out of some twenty-six Crows killed during the past year, with- 

 out regard to species, between Sandy Hook and Seabright, N. J., 

 eleven were Fish Crows. 



These birds are not so suspicious as Corvus nmericanus. Mr. 

 Keeler shot most of the specimens that were killed by him from the 

 cover of a "blind" over "decoys" (which are simply pieces of 

 blackened pasteboard of bird shape, set up at different angles, so as 

 to present a side toward each direction). As the Crows fly over, they 

 see the " decoys," and, supposing the place to be a good feeding- 

 ground, fly towards it ; I have even seen Common Crows alight be- 

 fore discovering their mistake. 



On the 17th of March, 1880, Mr. Keeler "winged" a Fish Crow, 

 and, after carefully dressing the wound, put his bird in a large wire 

 cage in a corner of the conservatory, where he became quite tame, 

 and, after a time, was permitted to roam at will about the house 

 and grounds ; but he always returned at the close of the afternoon 

 to his wire cage. This Crow was very fond of cheese, especially 

 such as was hard and dry : if a large piece was given to him, he 

 ■would hold it upon the perch with his claws, and then strike, ap- 

 parently with might and main, at the cheese with his bill, until the 

 piece was broken into morsels small enough to be devoured, which 

 he would then swallow, often choking in his haste. Some Bantam 

 fowls were in the habit of roosting on the Crow's cage ; this seemed 

 to cause him great annoyance, and he made several attempts to 

 drive the fowls away. One morning, when Mr. Keeler went as 

 usual to feed his pet, he found a large hole in the top of the cage, 

 and the remains of a Bantam hen below. The fowl had been par- 

 tially eaten, and many of its feathers were lying in scattered bunches 

 about the bottom of the cage. Corvus, evidently, was the author of 

 this mischief, for his bill was stained with gore, to which some of 

 the fowl's feathers were sticking ; while he held his victim's head 

 upon the perch with his claws, having already succeeded in decapi- 

 tating it, and with immense delight was devouring the brains. The 

 diet of these birds, when wild, consists chiefly of dead fishes, clams, 

 shrimps, and other marine food, and to this the stomachs of nine 

 dissected Fish Crows bore evidence ; and, although we found Com- 

 mon Crows feeding upon the carcass of a dead horse in numbers, in 



