House Crows fishing

YC Wee
on 24th September 2010

House Crow (Corvus splendens) are scavengers. They hang around rubbish dumps and anywhere where there are scraps of food to forage on. Basically omnivorous, they eat anything from grains, fruits, flower nectar to kitchen scraps. Insects are a regular food, taken on the wing or from exposed perches.

Being scavengers do not mean that they are not efficient hunters. They regularly raid bird nests to take the eggs and chicks. They have been reported to have caught a rat and also a bat.

They also regularly fish in shallow waters or even dive into slightly deeper waters, albeit awkwardly, as shown in the image above by Dr Jonathan WK Cheah.

Reference:
Madge, S. & H. Burn (1999). Crows and Jays. Christopher Helm, London.

If you like this post please tap on the Like button at the left bottom of page. Any views and opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the authors/contributors, and are not endorsed by the Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum (LKCNHM, NUS) or its affiliated institutions. Readers are encouraged to use their discretion before making any decisions or judgements based on the information presented.

YC Wee

Dr Wee played a significant role as a green advocate in Singapore through his extensive involvement in various organizations and committees: as Secretary and Chairman for the Malayan Nature Society (Singapore Branch), and with the Nature Society (Singapore) as founding President (1978-1995). He has also served in the Nature Reserve Board (1987-1989), Nature Reserves Committee (1990-1996), National Council on the Environment/Singapore Environment Council (1992-1996), Work-Group on Nature Conservation (1992) and Inter-Varsity Council on the Environment (1995-1997). He is Patron of the Singapore Gardening Society and was appointed Honorary Museum Associate of the Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum (LKCNHM) in 2012. In 2005, Dr Wee started the Bird Ecology Study Group. With more than 6,000 entries, the website has become a valuable resource consulted by students, birdwatchers and researchers locally and internationally. The views and opinions expressed in this article are his own, and do not represent those of LKCNHM, the National University of Singapore or its affiliated institutions.

Other posts by YC Wee

Singapore-Nature: 17. Citizen Science

30th August 2023

Singapore-Nature: 16. Living close to nature

18th August 2023

Singapore’s secret “garden”

20th July 2023

Singapore-Nature: 15. Looking versus studying birds

12th July 2023

Singapore Nature: 14. Accolades

6th July 2023

5 Responses

  2. Pingback: Twitter Trackbacks for Bird Ecology Study Group » House Crows fishing [talfrynature.com] on Topsy.com

  3. Dear Dr Jonathan WK Cheah

    This intelligent Passerine has once again surprised me in their valiant effort to remove food from a water course. Any slight miscalculation would prove fatal over this expanse of water. Cane Toads were introduced into Australia in 1935 to eat French’s Cane Beetle and the Greyback Cane Beetle with disastrous consequences. This intelligent passerine has taken advantage of the cane toad by turning their body over to access their intestines.

    Reply

  4. Dear Dr. Jonathan,

    Always heard that crows has IQ of a 5 year old human child. This weekend I witnessed that crows at Okhla Bird Sanctury, Noida India, have learnt the art of fishing seeing other water birds in their vaciniy . Sharing link of mg FB where I posted a pic of a crow with a fish catch.

    Regards,
    Vijay Singh

    Reply

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Any views and opinions expressed in the articles are solely those of the authors/contributors, and are not endorsed by the Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum (LKCNHM, NUS) or its affiliated institutions. Readers are encouraged to use their discretion before making any decisions or judgements based on the information presented.

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