| Carrion crow - Corvus corvus corone - Family: Corvidae
 Carrion crow - Corvus corvus corone© Chris GomersallThe carrion crow is completely black, unlike its Scottish cousin, the hooded crow, which has a grey back and underparts. Crows usually nest in trees, typically 10 metres or more up, but sometimes use buildings or rock ledges. They build large, untidy-looking nests, often before the trees come into leaf. Unlike rooks, which nest in colonies, crows are more likely to build solitary nests, well separated from each other. The harsh call or caw of the crow is loud and distinctive. The breeding period is between April and June. The crow has a stout, powerful rounded bill and a slow, deliberate mode of flying. The tail is squarer than that of the rook but a more obvious difference between the two species is that rooks have a bare, featherless face patch around the bill. Conversely, rooks have more feathered legs and at close quarters have a baggy-trousered appearance. Carrion crows regularly visit gardens in search of food, sometimes in flocks. In the garden they will tend to feed on slugs, snails, other pest species and weed seeds but they are opportunists and will tackle anything that looks edible. FoodOmnivorous: for example, seeds, fruit, insects, eggs and chicks of smaller birds, kitchen scraps and occasionally even tadpoles from garden ponds. Crows are predators of small mammals, amphibians, slugs and snails, worms, beetles and ants. PlantsCrab apple, Dogwood, Rowan PreyAnts, Beetles, Blue tit, Coal tit, Common frog, Common garden snail, Common sexton beetle, Common shrew, Dormouse, Dunnock, Great black slug, Great tit, Lesser stag beetle, Mallard, Moorhen, Rabbit, Robin, Rose chafer, September cranefly, Slow-worm, Smooth newt, Song thrush, Wood mouse, Woodpigeon, Worms, Yellow-necked mouse |
