2 BULLETIN 621, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



parts, especially the Middle West, before fair judgment could be 

 passed. A campaign with this object in view was inaugurated, with 

 the result that 2,118 stomachs of crows, both old and young, became 

 available for this investigation. Effort was made also, by means of 

 over 3,000 letters of inquiry, to secure reliable information as to the 

 good or harm done by the crow, based on actual field observation. 

 The data obtained have made it possible to present considerable trust- 

 worthy testimony which distinctly reflects present conditions. The 

 quantity and character of the combined evidence thus secured seems 

 sufficient to justify a final conclusion as to the economic status of the 

 crow in this country. 1 



It is doubtful whether a study of the food habits of any other North 

 American bird involves as many intricate problems as that of the 

 crow. Practically omnivorous, the bird is capable of surviving in 

 widely diversified environments. In its diet may be found every- 

 thing from the choicest poultry and the tenderest shoots of sprouting 

 grain to carrion and weed seeds, many of which at best offer but a 

 morsel of nourishment. The fact that no less than 656 specifically 

 different items have been identified in the stomachs examined gives 

 some idea of the bird's resourcefulness, its potentialities for good or 

 harm, and the complexity of the problem of determining its worth. 

 Popular opinion also, often based on years of intimate experience, is 

 by no means uniform. Many complaints against the bird are well- 

 nigh traditional, while some of its beneficial habits have been matters 

 of common knowledge for generations. Thus irreconcilable differ- 

 ences of opinion may exist among residents of even the same com- 

 munity. And by no means of one mind are those persons who have 

 studied the bird from a strictly scientific standpoint. The writer, 

 however, feels that the abundant evidence before him has been care- 

 fully and impartially weighed and asks indulgence of those who may 

 discover that the process of reasoning from these data is at variance 

 with their own. 



SYSTEMATIC POSITION AND DISTRIBUTION OF THE CROW. 



Notwithstanding the fact that to the average farmer in eastern 

 United States the crow (PI. I) is the most familiar of birds, and one 

 would hardly suppose that there could be any ambiguity in the use of 



1 Much of the information and material upon which this bulletin is based was acquired 

 through the kind assistance of persons who volunteered their services. As they are too 

 numerous to mention individually, the writer is compelled to express his appreciation 

 for their help collectively. Without their aid very little information would have been 

 available on the extent of damage to crops and the efficiency of protective measures. 

 Further, without the assistance of specialists in various fields, to whom also the writer 

 is greatly indebted, many problems arising in the examination of stomachs would have 

 remained unsolved. 



