Alabama, ipi8. 55 



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COMMON CROW 



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LENGTH, 19 inches. Range: Breeds throughout the United 

 States and most of Canada; winters generally in the United 

 States. Habits and economic status: The general habits of the 

 crow are universally known. Its ability to commit such misdeeds as 

 pulling corn and stealing eggs and fruit and to get away unscathed 

 is little short of marvelous. Much of the crow's success in life is 

 due to cooperation, and the social instinct of the species has its 

 highest expression in the winter roosts, which are sometimes fre- 

 quented by hundreds of thousands of crows. From these roosts 

 daily flights of many miles are made in search of food. Injury to 

 sprouting corn is the most frequent complaint against this species,, 

 but by coating the seed grain with coal tar most of this damage 

 may be prevented. Losses of poultry and eggs may be averted by 

 proper housing and the judicious use of wire netting. The insect 

 food of the crow includes wireworms, cutworms, white grubs, and 

 grasshoppers, and during outbreaks of these insects the crow ren- 

 ders good service. The bird is also an efficient scavenger. But 

 chiefly because of its destruction of beneficial wild birds and their 

 eggs the crow must be classed as a criminal, and a reduction in its 

 numbers in localities where it is seriously destructive is justifiable. 

 — Farmers' Bulletin. 



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