What better subject to exalt in this first, our creature feature, than the Common Crow?

North American Crows (Corvus brachyrhynchos)are familiar over much of lower Canada, Continental US, and northern Mexico: large, intelligent, all-black birds with hoarse, cawing voices. They are commonly arboreal, but frequently jet-setters. They are opportunistic feeders, diligent scavengers, and feared succubi.

Wild crows can recognize individual people. They can pick a person out of a crowd, follow them, and remember them apparently for years. This is hardly a problem for them, as they can live to be nearly 15 years old. I often wonder if I were to return to the suburb where I grew up – its once forested acres now marred with TGI Fridays,Gas Stations and Muli-Plexes – one such crow would remain and remember me. I had rescued the nestling while it was being picked on by a gang of other birds, hopping around uselessly on the forest floor. When I brought it home (thinking it would get on just fine with our three parakeets) all my mother could manage to say was, ” Dear god, why did you bring that evil thing into our house??”

Contrary to this common belief, Crows are far from evil and have been revered across several cultures and religions, from Native American to Hindu. Their larger cousin, the Raven, was in fact the first bird released by Noah from the ark, only followed by a dove when the raven decided not to come back.