Crows not ruffled by Dick Cheney

Crows can recognize human faces, but will not be intimidated by the likes of Vice President Dick Cheney, our friends at the Countdown to Crawford blog write:

Ever since Alfred Hitchcock's film excursion into ornithology, birds have been cast as innocent-looking creatures that can scare the daylights out of humans.

Along comes an attempt to scare birds--by looking like Dick Cheney. Except it didn't work. Turned out the birds were too smart for that cheap trick.

John Marzluff, an ecosystems scientist at the University of Washington in Seattle, wanted to try an experiment, to test the intellect of crows. So he and his students, when trapping the birds, wore scary Halloween masks of cavemen. When not trapping, they showed the crows masks of humans, including Vice President Dick Cheney.

According to Discover Magazine, the crows "scolded" anyone wearing the caveman masks, and made much less noise for Cheney.

The Cheney mask, according to Discover, was chosen for its "neutral" appearance.

--Tony Barboza

Photo: Los Angeles Times

Comments

[Brien Comerford]

The crow population has been decimated in Chicago by a deadly virus. Crows are vital to ecosystems and they eat road-kill. All the Chicagoans who used to detest crows are now saying that they miss them. Absence makes the heart grow fonder. I always respected highly intelligent crows. Not Dick Cheney the man who is an enemy to endangered species, wildlife and nature conservation.

[elizabeth]

Crows are highly intelligent and do not suffer fools gladly. We are fortunate to have visits from a great Crow family consisting of two parents and two kids. I have been lucky to take pictures of the nest building in the top of a nearby Eucalyptus tree and to observe the eventual arrivals. The fledglings look almost as big as their parents and except for their gangly stance and rip roaring screeches one has a problem telling them apart. Early am the family politely arrive for a breakfast of peanuts and brown bread. Occasionally during the day one or two will pop by to say "hi." They do not bother the other birds and in time the Doves and Sparrows etc. have become accustomed to these big ,black Gentle Giants and harmony resides. Shrill squawks still herald the arrival of Pegasus our resident Blue Jay, but his shrill squawks fail to intimidate these days.