4 June 2012
It used to be easy to identify crows in Pittsburgh. Every crow was an American crow (Corvus brachyrhyncos). But not any more.
In recent years fish crows (Corvus ossifragus) have been expanding their range northward from the coastal Southeast. The first I’d heard of them in western Pennsylvania was in Indiana County, PA in 2008. I found this odd because Indiana County is land-locked.
What was a fish crow doing without fish? They earned their name by scavenging on beaches but fish crows aren’t picky. They’ll eat anything. They must have made an easy transition from dead fish to discarded hamburgers. Perhaps one spring they followed some American crows to western Pennsylvania … and so they are here. This year, 2012, they’ve been reported nesting in the City of Pittsburgh.
Fish crows are smaller than American crows but they’re impossible to tell apart except by voice. As Birds of North America Online says, “The only reliable difference between the two is vocal. The Fish Crow sounds like an American Crow with a bad cold.”
I’m sure you can imagine an American crow’s call without listening but here’s a recording to prepare you for the difference. “Caw, Caw, Caw.”
The fish crow’s call is two nasal syllables: “Uh-oh. Uh-oh.” (Click here to hear.)
Easy? Yes, except at this time of year. Baby American crows have nasal voices too (yikes!) so the call you hear could be a baby crow. There’s still a difference, though. Baby American crows call with a single note. (Click hear to hear.)
So, now that we have two kinds of crows, you’ll have to wait until they speak to be sure of them. “Uh oh!”
(photo of a fish crow by Chuck Tague)
Thought I heard the Fish Crows call in squirrel hill one morning, I figured it was an American crow imitating it??? Maybe it really was a Fish Crow. I’ve heard them in North Carolina and there call is quite distinctive.
Are the American and Fish crows know to hybridize?
No, American and Fish crows do not hybridize. Interestingly, the American Crow and the Northwestern Crow do interbreed. In June 2020 the American Ornithological Union acknowledged that they are the same species so the “Northwestern Crow” became an American crow overnight. https://www.audubon.org/news/why-northwestern-crow-vanished-overnight
Now add ravens to that mix and it’s a brain teaser!
I love crows! I’ll keep an ear open for the Fish Crow.
Hello, I am in love with this photo. As well as many others on your site. I am an artist from Maine and would love to have permission to paint this particular one. If not, thank you anyway for the inspiration. Your blog is beautiful!
Thank you either way,
Neiley
http://neileyharris.blogspot.com
This year we’ve observed bad behavior of Fish Crows attacking chasing biting heads of ducks on land- even breaking wings, then going back to kill & eat baby ducks. Mostly acting in gangs. We see mutilated ducks unable to fly. We live on the Crawfish River in Wisconsin.