Ever since the winter crows came back to Oakland I’ve wanted to watch them arrive at the roost so last Friday evening, November 4, I stopped by Schenley Farms and Pitt’s campus. What a spectacle!
Half an hour before sunset a steady stream of silent crows flew in from the southwest to the hill above Bigelow Boulevard near Centre Avenue. I assumed they would spend the night up there, but no!
Crows are afraid of great horned owls — for good reason — so they want a good view from the roost. They prefer the tops of tall well lit trees or rooftops five to ten stories high. And they want no owls nearby. Perhaps that’s why they like cities.
The sky was clear on Friday evening and the light lingered long after sunset at 6:13pm so my camera could “see” them against the sky. Before it was dark nearly 40 crows chose this bare tree. The tree isn’t full yet.
As darkness fell they left the hilltop for the area bounded by Fifth, Bayard, Bellefield and Tennyson. And now they were loud! Hundreds flew above me on Bayard Street.
They assembled at the roof edges of tall apartment buildings and then burst off to choose another site (photo at top). They landed on Alumni Hall and packed in tightly on the Wyndham Hotel roof.
… and they settled in the treetops on campus, 100 to 200 per tree.
I calculated 4,000 crows in that four block area, but they were still arriving after it was too dark to see. I have no idea how many spent the night there.
Until today most people didn’t notice the crows because rush hour was over by 6:00pm. But today we’ve changed the clocks back and rush hour will be at sunset, 5:09pm.
People will be surprised by the spectacle — and some will be repulsed — that there are thousands of crows in Oakland.
(photos by Kate St. John)
