163 



Field Marks. In addition to size, which is always an uncertain criterion in open 

 space, the voice is the most certain guide. The croak of the Raven is hoarse and rattling, 

 not clear and distinct like the caw of the Crow. However, young Crows have notes almost 

 indistinguishable from those of the Raven and where both species occur, vocal characters 

 are not always reliable guides. When one sees a Raven one can easily imagine marked 

 characteristics of form and flight, but it must be confessed that they seldom become obvious 

 to the ordinary observer until after the identity has been determined. 



Nesting. Usually on cliff ledges, sometimes in trees; in nest of sticks. 



Distribution. The species is found in both the Old and the New World far into the 

 polar regions, where its black coat against the general whiteness is a warning against a 

 too ready tendency to stretch the protective coloration theory to cover the whole of ani- 

 mated creation. The species once occupied all Canada, but now is restricted to the most 

 unsettled parts in the north, and southward along the mountain ranges of both coasts 

 to well into the United States. 



SUBSPECIES. The Raven is divided into several geographical races. The Euro- 

 pean is the type form. In Canada, we have the Northern Raven C. c. principalis. The 

 differences between them are slight. 



The Raven is traditionally a bird of ill-omen. Sombre of colour, 

 dismal in voice, solitary and wild of habit, it fills in the north the place 

 of the Vulture in the south. The Raven holds aloof from the haunts of 

 men. As civilization has advanced into the primeval vastnesses, the 

 Raven, unlike its close relative the Crow, has retired and is today what 

 it was in the beginning, a bird of the wilderness. Knowing only the 

 physical requirements and food habits of the two species, one would 

 naturally think that the Raven could thrive as well under civilization 

 as the Crow. It is omnivorous and can adjust itself to almost any food 

 supply. It is hardy and can live in climates and under conditions where 

 its weaker congener can not exist, yet for some unexplained cause, the 

 Crow increases and the Raven disappears when settlement advances. 



Economic Status. The Raven eats both animal and vegetable food, 

 but has a strong partiality for the former. It seeks the offal from the 

 hunter's dressed game, or the game itself if it be available. It lurks about 

 the outskirts of rookeries and makes dashes for eggs and young. By 

 the sea it searches the shores at low water for crabs and other sea life and 

 for anything edible that may be washed up. Avoiding cultivation as 

 it does it has little direct influence on the crops. 



488. American Crow. fh. — la corneille d'amerique. Corvus brachyrhynchos. 

 L, 19-30. Plate XXV A. 



Distinctions. May be mistaken for Raven but distinguished from it by size and the 

 absence of the long, pointed, lanceolate feathers on the throat. 



Field Marks. General appearance, with which one soon becomes very familiar. 



Nesting. In trees; in nest of sticks. 



Distribution. All temperate North America. 



SUBSPECIES. Two subspecies of American Crows occur in Canada, but in the 

 east we have only the type form, the Eastern Crow. 



Whereas the Raven retreats before the advance of civilization, the 

 Crow increases. It is omnivorous, feeding readily on anything from 

 carrion to freshly sprouting corn. Without doubt the Crow has increased 

 enormously in the country since the removal of the forests, and probably its 

 advent in eastern Canada was coincident with the arrival of the white 

 man. The Crow is a partial migrant. Most of the birds go south in 

 winter, but slaughter-houses and garbage dumps in the neighbourhood of 

 cities and towns have induced numbers to become permanent residents. 



