Month: April 2022

To hatch a crow, a black rainbow
Bent in emptiness
over emptiness
But flying.

Ted Hughes, Crow: From the Life and Songs of the Crow (Faber and Faber, 1970)

As spring emerges, many beings start getting prepared for their new fledglings. Close by, two of these creatures have begun building a nest. Up and down they fly, building slowly, the little home for their new baby crows.

Talking with a friend about crows, she pointed out that they have begun dive-bombing people walking by. Maybe they are confused and think that the passersby’s hair are twigs, which they would like to use for their nest, I suggested. She didn’t sound very convinced with my theory.

Trying to figure out if my guess was accurate, I read a little about the reason crows chase people around during these months. What I found as an explanation for their behavior, was somewhat related to my nest hypothesis, but not exactly.

Crows during breeding season defend their nests from potential predators, protecting the area around their nest. Hence, the diving and chasing of humans is not to find twigs, but to scare people and other animals away from their future crow babies.

In an interview, Wayne Goodey, a Zoologist, specialist in animal behavior, when asked about crows dive-bombing during spring said:

“The crows are not targeting you, or hate you… all they want to do is give you a reason to move on. If you keep moving once they chase you, you have no problem at all.”

It is funny and makes animal-sense. I share with you some pictures of my two busy friends building their new home: