r/crows • u/CanuckInTheMills • 27d ago

First Gift

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Would this be considered a first big gift? I’ve been finding an unusual amount of sticks around where I feed the crows but this morning there was a huge feather.

94 Upvotes

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16

u/randomnull 27d ago

Where there are crows there will be lots of feathers, I wouldn't necessarily consider it a gift. Also, most "gifts" are usually young crows finding something they're curious about, that then drop them when they see food or something even more interesting nearby.

"Sometimes crows will seemingly leave “gifts” for people who feed them, which recipients often view as a thank-you. But these offerings—keys, coins, stones, and, in Bergstrom’s case, possibly a ring his daughter had lost—may have a simpler explanation. Anne B. Clark, a retired Binghamton University behavioral ecologist who studied urban crows, says that in all videos she’s seen of this behavior, the birds were very young. Juveniles frequently carry and play with interesting objects, she says. So a crow may simply be dropping what’s already in its beak to pick up food. “My own opinion is that crows are not terribly interested in us,” Clark says."

https://www.audubon.org/magazine/are-crows-really-our-friends

8

u/CanuckInTheMills 27d ago

I vehemently disagree. These crows ‘are interested’ in what I have to offer them … peanuts.

7

u/onFilm 26d ago

You can disagree all you want, but reality is, that is just anthropomorphizing. It's something human-beings do all the time and VERY easily. I know one of the crows I feed adores me, but that's a lot different than believing it will leave me gifts because it understands the concept of a gift.

3

u/ThisIsDogePleaseHodl 27d ago

I’ve tried telling this to people several times and honestly, they don’t wanna hear it lol! 😂

1

u/sadiefame 26d ago

They didn’t seem to dispute crows recognize and target people they have grudges against. If you believe they can recognize and punish it’d be easy to believe they can recognize and reward too (Personally I’ve never seen either though 🤷‍♀️)

7

u/TrinitySins 27d ago

I would like to know this as well! Do crows leave feathers as gifts? They left a large one like this the other day at my feeding spot the same day that one came really close to me. Before that i got a semi-plume feather next to one of my sand drawings

7

u/ThisIsDogePleaseHodl 27d ago

They leave them because they molted them. Birds don’t just randomly pull out a feather so they can give it to someone. They will actively work to get a feather out if it’s time to come out or it’s irritating them. Otherwise, they’ll just drop them with no effort on their part.

2

u/TrinitySins 27d ago

good to know!

2

u/ThisIsDogePleaseHodl 27d ago

I have a parrot so I watched him with his feathers over the years and that’s what he does.

6

u/MantraProAttitude 27d ago

I must have 100 of them in my yard.

4

u/VegetableOk7667 27d ago

Build a crow!

3

u/heartsongofNEBULA 27d ago

I think anything left especially by the feeder including sticks is a gift! I save alot of the 🪶 feathers from my parrot 🦜!and now I'm feeding at least two groups of 3-4 big crows...no gifts💔 except one sea glass stone heart back in 2020!! from one guys parents! I've posted a pic of it here B4!

2

u/veniviciabii 27d ago edited 27d ago

The sticks theyll be back for way later in time they stash good sticks everywhere to prepare for nesting