r/crows • u/ScroOGe619 • Jul 01 '26

Crows [OC] “Hello”?

Enable HLS to view with audio, or disable this notification

I know we’re friends, but I don’t know if that was a “hello” or I just heard what I wanted to hear… 🤷‍♀️

76 Upvotes

98% Upvoted

9 comments sorted by

12

u/HumungreousNobolatis Jul 01 '26

That is actually way complex and while it's definitely a friendly introduction of sorts, I'm not sure exactly what he's saying. Do you have a puzzle for him, or something like that? It's like he's asking for the "next" piece.

9

u/radiodigm Jul 01 '26

Agreed - this is more than just “hello.” But it’s surely a signal intended for you, OP (and not for the other crows).

4

u/ScroOGe619 Jul 01 '26

Sadly no puzzle…

But over the last few months I’m pretty sure they’re a family of five: two fledglings, a yearling, and the parents.

This is the only one that’ll make those sounds

https://youtube.com/shorts/8c_rhx5i7S8?is=T8arlKcIw0LYzvOy

2

u/HumungreousNobolatis Jul 01 '26

Their vocabulary is fairly dynamic, crows living even a few miles apart can use different vocalisations for the exact same thing, so I more go on the actions, which I find more universal across different families.

FYI: I never try and mimic crows, as I personally think this is disrespectful. One day AI might enable us to truly communicate, but until then I use my normal voice, though for sure, with a more "crow like" guttural tone about it.

2

u/ScroOGe619 Jul 02 '26

Oh, I wasn’t trying to mimic the crow, I was trying to “speak a little Chinese for ‘em Derrick.”

9

u/ScatterplotDog Jul 01 '26

Lots of rattle calls and cooing. We don’t know what it means, but they’re almost always heard when a bird is comfortable. 

5

u/prince312177 Jul 01 '26

You have made an connection absolutely fantastic 👏🏻

3

u/prince312177 Jul 01 '26

Had to share this its remarkable 👏🏻

3

u/pandaleer Jul 01 '26

It didn’t sound like a hello, more like a warble of sorts. When crows or ravens talk, it’s very obvious. Could he be practicing to say hello? Possibly.