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Crows are cool and all! Before you humanize them too much, remember they predate upon other birds' chicks, etc.
But what can be more human than being a predator and a terrible being as well?
Hmm. I think it's the human capability to care about others that you're not related to which has led to our domination over other species.
Or that others can be useful, even if you don't care about them.
Oh we humans would never eat another animal
Your sarcasm has no power here :p
Or their periods and/or babies
Humans are famous for not being omnivores, of course. You think history isn't full of brutal hunting by humans who didnt know or care about anything better?
Predate? You mean prey?
I've always used predate in this context because prey as a verb tends to get confused with prey species.
To be fair, pretty much any bird that isn't exclusively an herbivore will do that if the opportunity arises. Birds be vicious little predators fo sho.
Hell, there's a cardinal that hangs around our house, and I've seen him eating a dead bird before. Well, picking pieces of it off, then flying into the shrubbery, then coming back in a few seconds. I assume he was eating it, since they nest in a different section of the yard. So I wouldn't even be surprised if pretty much any bird would go after unprotected chicks if the chance arises.
And all of them will eat eggs, afaik, if they can crack them, our they find one cracked already.
It's a common joke to refer to their dinosaur ancestry, but even those cute like songbirds have a savage side, just like their more intimidating kin.
remember they predate upon other birds’ chicks, etc.
Wait 'til you see what humans do!
Aw look, roommates!
They were just very good friends.
Rookmates
They used to do this with my stupid fucking cat. Half the reason I let my wife get the thing was that I thought it would keep the magpies and crows away and I could actually get decent sleeps in spring and summer but no, this dumb asshole car decided to be friends with them and lay on his back with them while they screamed.
Vroom vroom
It seems so hit or miss in kitty instincts. They're either small tigers or clueless furballs.
Pretty sure it's our fault half of them have no instincts
I happened to get one of each, ironically it's the smaller of the two who is the hunter.
if the cat gets hungry enough it'll start to broaden its perspective on what can be food.
broaden it enough and it'll include you, even.
To be fair, it's the same for humans.
Ay. Ay. You lookin mighty tasty there. You wanna hop in this here vat o bbq sauce?
If you have a vat of BBQ sauce and already looking to eat some humans, I'm not sure you're doing it out of desperation.
I dunno, I would say that I'm pretty desperate for some long pork.
idk what it is about calling cats dumb assholes, but it rarely fails to crack me up
Mine hated magpies. First time we took him to my mothers house I heard some miaus smd found him on a rock in the middle of a little brook next to the house being mobbed by three magpies. And I had to rescue him. A little while later I saw the setup. One magpie was limping along being tracked by the cat. The second the cat jumped in the rock the other two immediately started mobbing him and the "wounded" would join in.
After that magpies were an arch enemy. A few years later I sat on my own porch, and this magpie was hopping around for probably 20-30 minutes when suddenly my fur missile came out if a bush next to the porch. He had bided his time and actually got both his paws all around the magpie who stated pecking his head. Think he was as surprised as the magpie as he actually let it go. (To my relief as I think he would haveoat an eye)
I saw that the magpies had learned and was more wary when they spotted him.
Just keep in mind, you're the one intruding on their environment. Don't use a cat to kill the native birds. We've had many extinct species from us letting our cats out into the environment.
Cat owners generally don't care.
Fun fact: many shelters in Germany won't allow you to adopt a cat if it can't go outside freely.
So I don't have a cat. Do I worry about extinct birds or anything like that? No. Cats are native in Europe and I have shit tons of birds of prey (and storks) around here that catch way more birbs than the local cats do.
But I've had cats for years, and they've been poisoned (rat and antifreeze), hit by cars, hit by trains, and even shot by farmers. I kept my last cat inside.
My apartment and balcony are big enough. I'm looking at rescuing a couple of cats in Bulgaria because those rescue organisations insist you keep the cats inside. Sorry, German kitties.
Yeah, cats going outside is a risk to the cat itself, not just local wildlife.
Cats with feathers
That's so damn cool to see! I thought I was fucking crazy!
Years and years ago, I made friends with some crows. So they'd hang around our yard a lot, kind of like their home base. I'd see that kind of thing, and wonder wtf was going on, but any time I'd tell somebody, it was like I was trying to prank them or something (I mean, not without reason, I am known for telling tall tales that turn into absurdity. I always fess up at the end, but it does mean I get the side eye a lot).
But nobody I ever told about it had ever seen it.
I've even seen jays do it a couple of times.
Also Australian magpies aren't actually corvids, that are related to crows, magpies and ravens. They belong in a different bird family altogether.
thanks, Lemmidan
Paper referenced (I think): https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10071-020-01466-0
I see you there, being a badass and directly linking to scientific papers in the comments.
Co-lying is mentioned, but it isn't the subject of the paper linked.