crow man at Cornell weighs in

Kevin McGowan, the resident crow man at Cornell, tells me that male crows are bigger than females and that crows mutually preen each other. He tells me that the female I saw 'allopreening' (i.e. 'preening another') a bigger male could have been an offspring from a previous year as it is late for a new pair to be forming and trying to nest. Even so, I really think this is a newly mated pair just formed this spring and not a father-daughter combination. Why do I think this? Something about the way they act together. I actually saw the male fly up to the top of a pine tree and call a few times until the female came and continued with her allopreening.

Kevin also reports that American Crows in western Long Island were very badly hit by West Nile and have almost disappeared and their crow habitat has been largely taken over by Fish Crows. Nothing like that has happened here. I counted half a dozen American Crows over the marsh this morning and others in the woods. There's probably at least another dozen on the opposite side of Weesuck Creek -- perhaps even 18 or 20 birds. That adds up to a lot of crows and, even allowing for helpers at the nest, probably at least a dozen nesting pairs. Even as I write this, I can hear the sound of young crows just out of the nest. American Crows that is.

I don't know how to explain the throngs of Fish Crows in Sag Harbor. Was there a die-off of American Crows that permitted the Fish Crows to invade? Or were the American Crows hesitant to invade a built-up habitat in the first place. Most people think of crows as urban birds but American Crows have invaded cities only in recent years. Around here (i.e. Eastern LI) they are still most common around shorelines and in rural, farming areas. At least that's my experience.

Another tropical rainstorm -- the second in three days! -- and, alas, I think the titmouse nest is now defunct (maybe the young ones just fledged but I doubt it). This morning's weather was very beautiful; sunny, dry, almost like a fall day. But it was ominously quiet with just a woodpecker raps and a call or two from the Great Crested Flycatcher. I'm somewhat concerned about the effect that Friday's and Sunday's heavy tropical storms had on breeding birds.

Lots of flowering plants in bloom including Black Locust, Multiflora Rose, rubus blackberry and, one of my favorites, the tiny magical Oldfield Toadflax coming out of pure sand.

Eric Salzman