Which are Crows and which are Ravens; that is the question.
First of all, Ravens are larger with thicker bills than Crows. Secondly, Ravens have fanned tails and long sharply pointed wings; Crow’s tails are blunt, their wings shorter and rounder; the difference is noticeable when in flight. Ravens love to soar for long periods, Crows do not.
Like Mocking Birds, crows will mimic the sounds they hear. If you hear a strange-sounding dog barking up in tree, it will be a Crow, not a Raven or a Mocking Bird.
American Crow, typical caws
Common Raven, various calls
Raven, immature, frenzied calls
The pair of Senior Citizen Ravens sat on the bench below for several minutes while one of them (don’t know if it was Ma or Pa) ranted on and on – and on, about its troubled life. Bored, the other paid no attention what so ever. The ranter, meanwhile, paid no attention as to whether its mate was listening. (Does that sound like any human couple you know?)
A flock of Crows is called a “Murder of Crows.” I don’t know the term’s origin but a flock of crows can be murderous. I know of three female White-tailed Kites here in Marin who were mobbed and killed by Crows in the last two years. The Kites vigorously defend themselves but they are outmatched; an adult Crow weighs 16 ounces, Kites 12.
Still, it is not entirely one-sided. Once I watched a female White-tailed Kite taunt a flock of Crows who were sitting on the ground, by repeatedly diving at a patch of ground the Crows claimed as their own territory.
I thought it was strange because the patch was gravel covered by short grass, not at all where a Kite would expect to find a vole, or field mouse.
Shortly the Crows were swirling and screaming around the nimble Kite, who slowly drew them far away from their spot. Once out of sight, the female’s partner arrived and proceeded to hunt in the Crows territory, unmolested by the outwitted Crows.
Crows and Ravens are both great fliers, nimble and quick no matter what the wind.
Ravens seem to love turbulent winds, they clearly enjoy the flips and twists the roiling winds throw them into, screaming loudly as they correct and climb again for another thrill ride.
Much like children and adults screaming on a roller coaster.
Crows love to come together in groups to socialize, often to the consternation of humans. In Auburn, New York 25,000 to 50,000 American Crows have taken to roosting in the small city’s large trees during winter since around 1993, much to the dismay of the human residents who can hardly hear above the racket.
A Crow giving voice to his (or her) opinions.
Your comments & questions much appreciated
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I heard a fascinating Raven sound while snowshoe hiking with friends in hill country north of Ottawa, Canada. We were all surprised by the sound — a series of very clear solitary notes, each one sounding something like a xylophone. Not a click — more like a woody bell.
We heard them before we saw the raven. The solitary bird flew in a deliberate straight line passing directly over us, making this note once every few seconds.
I have no doubt it was deliberately checking us out, given how its path was directly overhead and low enough we could hear the distinct whistling sound a raven’s wings make while flapping.
I’m familiar with the antics of the resident ravens in the area but have never heard this before. My best guess would be it was signalling its mate that it had seen intruders and was investigating.
The Ravens are great mimics, My daughter told me she once saw/heard one imitating an ambulance siren!
Richard
Clicking sound that a crow makes what does it mean???
Sorry, I don’t know. Some do some don’t,
Richard
I got to hear the clicking sound of a Raven for the first time today. Utterly fascinating to hear what we thought was a woodpecker pecking but Noooo, it was a raven clicking.
Glad you got to hear that and were able to identify it,
Richard
Thanks so much for your very informative display. I loved the sounds. I assumed that I was hearing crows, but I’ve heard the clicking sounds and some of the other raven sounds. I also had correctly identified a juvenile crow sound and I’m thrilled.
My “guess” was also based on the behavior of the adults around the baby, as they tolerated him getting up in their faces so much. Endlessly fascinating creatures.
Thanks so much.
Thanks for the clarification. I assumed they were crows living in the neighborhood (and some might well be) but the cry of the raven you posted is what I was hearing the other morning (albeit a bit slower). Now I’ll look a little closer at my sleek friends. Thanks for this wonderful blog.
Thanks Rob,
Glad it helped.
Richard
Excellent information on Crows and Ravens and loved that you included their calls. Thank you… Love your work!
Thanks Patty,
The differences of the two bird families eluded me for a long time,
Richard
Yes, I have wondered what the difference was. Most interesting