The Common Crow . 
9 
quiet, when, after a thorough pounding, the bird prepared to tear his quaiuy 
to pieces. Alarmed by the near approach of the wagon, ho seized his prey 
in his bill and flew heavily over the bushes which fringed the road. Creeping 
to the fence I was able to identify the victim as a young rabbit, and sub¬ 
sequently found its tracks in the road at the point where the crow had 
attacked it. My companion said that usually he had seen young rabbits at 
this place in the road for a week past, but this was the first time he had seen 
one attacked by a crow. 
“ Remains of rabbits occurred in 38 of the stomachs examined, and were 
most numerous in May, when they formed 3 per cent, of the entire food, 
30 stomachs taken during the month containing an average of 37 per cent, 
of rabbits (flesh, bones, hair, and teeth). These were almost invariably 
young, usually less than half grown. Of course it is possible that some 
were dead, but by far the greater number must have been caught and killed. 
In stomachs taken in April and June remains of young rabbits occurred to 
a less extent, but at no other season were any found. 
“ A single stomach from Maryland, taken in December, contained remnants 
of an adult rabbit, and similar remains were fouud in a stomach from 
Argentine, Kans., collected in January. Mr. Gr. E. Stilwell, the collector of 
the last-named stomach, gives the following account of the capture of the 
rabbit by five crows. He says : 
“ On January 2, .1891,1 was at a small station called Zarah, after rabbits 
and birds, and was crossing some rough, stony hills where the snow was 3 or 
4 inches deep. When on top of one of the hills my attention was drawn to 
some crows making a great fuss about something, and so I crawled through 
the weeds and brush until I was in shelter of a stone fence and about 30 feet 
from the birds. I had a splendid view of the fight, which lasted about half 
an hour. The crows took regular positions, one as a sentinel on a low tree 
over the others, one on the stone under which their victim was hiding, and 
the other three would walk as if about to go under the stone. The rabbit 
would try to come out, only to be driven back by savage pecks from the bird 
on the stone. When he was finally dead they began to peck his head as if 
eating. I did not wait any longer, but secured the sentinel and one other.’ 
“ Another correspondent, in Livingston County, Mo., mentions the fact 
that crows kill rabbits, but the habit seems to have escaped general notice, 
in spite of the fact that, as shown by the preceding table,, rabbits enter more 
largely into the crow’s diet than poultry and eggs, of which he is supposed 
to be particularly fond.” 
Briefly, it may be added that the facts are similar in Australia. Though 
I am unable to give such extensive data as the American investigators have 
obtained, I can say that I have found the remains of rabbits to be not infre- 
quent in the stomachs of Australian crows. I believe, however, that in most 
cases observed by me this food was from the carcases of rabbits killed by 
eagles. It is uncommon in many parts of Australia to see an eagle feeding 
without a fair attendance of waiting crows, who, when his majesty has 
finished his repast, compete for what has fallen from his table, and inasmuch 
as the eagle is a great hunter of rabbits, many remnants of these animals 
must in this manner find their way into the stomachs of crows. Still, I have 
no doubt it could be shown that our crows capture and kill young rabbits in 
the same manner as do their American relatives, though I do not happen to 
have seen or heard of such instances. 
The remains of mice are found in the stomachs of crows, and it would 
seem, according to Mr. Barrows, that our sable friends are very fond of 
those little pests. 
