Date: Mon, 8 Mar 2004 09:17:37 -0500 Reply-To: Maryland Birds & Birding Sender: Maryland Birds & Birding From: Janet Millenson Subject: Re: Phoebes (+ Crows) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit John Beetham wrote about hearing an unusual American Crow vocalization: "...something resembling a croak or rattle. Is this normal behavior?" Yes, it's normal; I've observed it many times. The "Birds of North America" write-up (No. 647) refers to a "rattle" vocalization but makes no mention of its purpose. In my opinion it serves some kind of social function. I've heard the rattling call when a group of crows has gathered together (not for mobbing) and when one crow is being chased around the trees by others. However, I have no idea if its meaning is closest to "Nyah, nyah, nyah", "Get the heck out of here," or "Wheee, this is fun!" As the pairs re-bond for nesting season, keep an ear out for crow "song" too -- a sort of cooing sound often accompanied by bowing, as the two birds sit together on a branch. Janet Millenson Potomac, MD (Montgomery County) janet@twocrows.com ---------------------------------------------------------------- "Look at the birds!" -- Pascal the parrot ======================================================================= To leave the MDOsprey list, send e-mail to listserv@home.ease.lsoft.com with the following message in line 1: signoff mdosprey ======================================================================= =========================================================================