330 



THE NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC MAGAZINE 



Photograph by Prof. E. H. Eaton 



THE DEATH TOLL OF A SINGLE NIGHT AT A CROWDS ROOST 



In December. 1901, the crows of Ontario County, New York, suffered severely from a 

 malady erroneously termed roup. In the illustration are the bodies of 72, dead crows, photo- 

 graphed where they fell, in an area about 150 feet in diameter (see page 327). 



day snooze. Finding a stick of con- 

 venient size, the bird would approach the 

 dog, lay it down within easy reach, and 

 then give its canine friend a nip or two 

 on the heels. 



As the startled dog awoke, the crow 

 would grasp the stick in its bill and, fly- 

 ing about four feet from the ground, 

 would start across the fields with the dog 

 in hot pursuit. This continued until both 

 had reached the point of exhaustion ; 

 whereupon each would return to its 

 respective place of rest, the dog on the 

 door-step and the bird on a nearby shed. 



Air. Nelson Wood, of the U. S. Na- 

 tional Museum, who has had extensive 

 experience with domesticated crows, sev- 

 eral of which developed the power of 

 speech to a remarkable degree, tells many 

 interesting anecdotes of these birds. One, 

 whose cage extended over the top of an 

 inclined cellar door, once discovered that 

 the cover of a baking-powder can with 

 which it had been playing would readily 

 slide down this incline. After experi- 



menting with this toy for some time in 

 various ways, it accidentally stepped into 

 it while at the top of the incline. That 

 was enough. Thereafter this avian 

 "shoot-the-chute" furnished no end of 

 amusement for both bird and spectators. 



a crow's revenge 



Another pet, whose linguistic powers 

 were above the average, would increase 

 its range of tone by thrusting its head 

 into a tin can and there give vent to its 

 thoughts. The activities of this same 

 bird form the basis of an incident which 

 I hesitate to construe as a manifestation 

 of corvine strategy and desire for re- 

 venge, but an imaginative mind might so 

 interpret the circumstances. It neverthe- 

 less makes a good story. 



"Jack" had been severely reprimanded 

 and, I believe, punished for alleged of- 

 fenses in a neighbor's cabbage patch. 

 These cabbages were choice plants — a 

 fact that even "Jack" seemed to appreci- 

 ate after he had been taken to task, as 



