What do crows eat? Why is crow an unlucky symbol?

The crow is the common name of several black birds of the family Passeriformes. Also known as Lao Gui, he likes to sing with a big mouth and is ferocious. What kind of food does the crow eat? Why is the crow a symbol of bad luck?

The crow is the largest of all passerine birds, with a body length of 400mm to 490mm. Feathers are mostly black or black and white, with a long beak, some with bright white collars and black feathers with purplish blue metallic luster; wings far longer than the tail; mouth, legs and feet are pure black. There are 36 species of crows, distributed almost all over the world. There are 7 species in China, most of which are resident birds.

Crow habit

Crow lives on forest edge or cliff, and mainly lives in various forest types, such as low mountain, plain and mountain broad-leaved forest, coniferous and broad-leaved mixed forest, coniferous forest, secondary miscellaneous forest, artificial forest and so on, especially in sparse forest and forest edge. It likes to move along forest roadsides, river valleys, coasts, farmland, swamps and grasslands, sometimes even in hilltop thickets and alpine tundra.

What kind of food do crows eat?

Omnivorous, many species like to eat carrion, and do some harm to seedlings and grains. But during the breeding period, it mainly feeds on small vertebrates, locusts, mole crickets, beetles and moth larvae, which is beneficial to farmers. In addition, because they like to eat rotten food and peck at agricultural garbage, it can eliminate the pollution of animal carcasses to the environment and play a role in purifying the environment. Generally fierce, full of aggressive habits, often prey on waterfowl, wading birds nest eggs and chicks.

Why are there flocks of crows in the evening and early morning?

Unlike wild geese, crows don't fly away in winter. They stay in the city for the winter. Generally speaking, crows begin to change into plump feathers in September and begin to concentrate on the city in mid-October to prepare for the winter. Every day at dawn and at five or six o'clock in the evening, it is time for crows to go out in search of food.

There is little food in winter, and crows are concentrated in various garbage dumps, so it is easier to find food from people's domestic garbage, so this kind of crow concentration occurs in winter. In March next year, they will split up into small groups and fly back to the countryside and mountains.

Why is the crow a symbol of bad luck?

In the records of ancient witch books, crows, like black cats, are often synonymous with death, fear and bad luck. The crow's cry is regarded as a bad omen and a bad omen. People think that the cry of a crow will take away people's lives and souls, so crows are hated by people and are regarded as birds of great foreboding. Because crows have a keen sense of smell and can sense the smell of corruption and death, they are considered ominous birds.

As for whether crows really bring bad luck, it is really impossible to prove. However, the weather changes greatly in autumn, and there is a saying: the old man is screaming, and the wind is coming. The hovering cry of large crowds of crows may herald a change in the weather.

The crow is an auspicious bird

Today, we use "crow beak" to describe people who predict bad things, but in fact, in ancient China, the crow was also a kind of auspicious bird. In ancient times, the divine bird "Golden Wu", which represented the sun, was the image of a three-legged crow. In the eyes of many ethnic minorities in China, as well as people in North Korea, Japan, Sri Lanka and other Asian countries, crows are also regarded as sacred birds. However, after the Tang Dynasty, the influence of farming culture became deeper and deeper, and the crows who loved carrion and poor appearance became more and more unlikable, and their cultural image plummeted.

In European and American culture, crows are generally regarded as bad birds, accompanied by disaster and death. But their cousin, the raven, is different. The raven is bigger and more powerful than any other crow. Odin, the main god in Norse mythology, had two Ravens as eyes and ears, flew to earth every day to collect information and came back to snitch on him.

For this reason, Ravens are regarded as birds of wisdom in Europe and the United States. Ravenclaw College, one of the four Hogwarts colleges in Harry Potter, specializes in smart students, and its name means "Raven's claws" (Ravenclaw). In another fantasy, Song of Ice and Fire, people even entrust the task of delivering messages to raven rather than pigeon: Ravens are not only strong, agile and not afraid of eagles, but also smart and reliable, and the delivery mission will be fulfilled.

Ravens are also very smart.

There are two famous fables of Aesop, one is "the crow and the fox", and the other is "the crow drinks water". In the former story, the crow is a fool and was deceived by the fox; in the latter story, the crow is very smart and knows how to use tools.

Ravens in reality are far smarter than people think. They have the largest brains of all birds (relative to weight), are more intelligent than many mammals, are sensitive and studious, and have a particularly good memory. In the experiments of scientists, crows show excellent arithmetic ability, adaptability, and even simple reasoning ability.

It is almost impossible to keep a crow in an ordinary bird cage. Whether it is a sliding door or a latch lock, the crow can easily handle it. And once it is successful, it will be used in other places by analogy. And if someone hits a crow or pulls out a bird's egg and happens to be seen by them in the course of the crime, it will be a big deal. They will keep the killer's characteristics in mind and tell each other. After that, as soon as the person shows up, the crows will fly to make noise and pull dung to retaliate, and even remember the face several years later. Face blindness, go to shame.

In the past, people thought that making and using tools was a special skill of humans and orangutans, but then scientists found that crows were no worse than orangutans. Wild crow that can process forked branches into hooks and reach into stone crevices or other crevices to find food. If you have a few tools at your mouth, they will also make a plan to use them step by step and end up with a big meal.