Humans And Crows

Crows are a rather maligned bird. They are black (ugly), sound harsh (another minus) are big (scary) and highly intelligent (scary as well). I was watching the rifle guys shooting crows in my neighbourhood, with a government permit no less, simply to keep the crow population down.

Now, lest people think that my neighbourhood has a crow population like something out of Alfred Hitchcock flicks, I should point out that I see them only occasionally. In fact, I see far more sparrows and mynahs, along with large flocks of pigeons. Strangely enough, the crows have crosshairs painted on them while the pigeons are allowed to fly all over the place. Presumably pooping on heads and laundry while they are at it.

Could it be disease spreading? Well...crows in large numbers will most certainly spread disease, but then again so will large numbers of pigeons, other birds or even humans. Perhaps we should shoot surplus humans to curb the spread of disease. If anything, I believe this enmity between humans and crows is akin to what Hans Landa says about rats in Inglourious Basterds: There simply is something about them that people detest.

They don't look particularly cute, and neither do they sound nice. They're smart enough to feed themselves at will, and big enough to defend themselves. If anything, I love crows. There is a metallic sheen to their feathers, and their harsh cries are simply another form of birdsong. The fact that they are big and able to defend themselves is yet another endearing trait, and I rarely see a crow chewed up by the neighbourhood cat, unlike the occasional hapless pigeon or mynah. Maybe humans simply don't like competition.