Riding in the Flock

[Stevil_Knevil]

..they proly read lips already..

 

[Zoot Katz]

..they proly read lips already..

If you followed any of the Usenet thread I referenced as the "back story" you might have seen this post:
. . . . /
(Tom Keats replied)
>We're either friends or enemies to 'em.
>There's no in-between. And they're very
>attuned to our vibes; they know what we're
>thinking.
(Then I responded)
I think they're also instinctively wary of anything that might resemble a long gun. . . a broom, for instance.

It's funny that animal can understand us but rarely do we let go of enough baggage to understand them. Some days I think the crows take me for just a slow soft garbage truck. I'd rather think they called me 'bike nuts' among themselves.

When the crow was rescued from the flue I told it to tell its buddies to stay the hell out of my chimney. It flew south, turned 180 degrees and crashed into the house across the lane. It laid in their bushes calling, "I'm alive", "I'm alive".
Then there was an older bird going, "yeah, yeah. yadda yadda" . Other birds saying "What?" and the freed bird screaming "HELP!".
The cawing and calling rang throughout audible range. Soon the bird's parents were there on the ground and its sibling was sitting on the wire. It was making sounds like "ma ma ma" and the response sounded like "okay baby okay".
I tossed 'em some smoked salmon skin and put a bucket of fresh water into the neighbour's bird bath.
The bird recuperated somewhat and they left the neighbours yard by late afternoon.
/ . . .
Being able to put words to their calls and watching how the adults nursed and guarded their injured baby moved me deeply.

I last saw crowgirl in February and she was looking rough but one day in the previous autumn I came out of the building and she was sitting on the wires with about twenty or 30 young birds. Maybe she was telling them to stay out of the chimney or showing them where to score tasty handouts.
There haven't been any more crows down the flue since she was released.