Why shoot the crows?

I was plowing corn for a friend one day and he told me to plow a twenty acre field, that about half of it had drowned. I started plowing and when I got to the part he said had drowned,the corn had not drowned but had been pulled up and the seed was eaten,and I knew it was either grackles or crows.Anyway, while I was plowing I started seeing crows pitch and pull up corn, but they would fly away when the tractor was getting close.Then I started seeing corn that was pulled up,with the seed attached,in other words the crow would pull up dinner,but didn't have time to eat it.My friend gave the crows (they took)ten acres of the twenty acre field. After I told him about the crows,He took his twenty-two and went back to kill some crows,but where they were feeding was to far for a 22.He said they would fly to a tree and laugh at him.He said Mr Crow you all keep laughing and I'll be back. He went to the sportshop and bought a single shot 17 cal,Ruger or Browning and scope, sighted it in and went back. That tree them crows liked to pitch in, was about two hundred yards. For the rest of that day and the next two days,every crow that pitched in that tree died.It was twenty-five or thirty laying under that tree.Their laugh was heard no more.Had he not shot them,they would have eaten the other ten acres. Eddie Buck

They freak me out. I was at the Grand Canyon several years ago sitting on a long rock ledge and I swear they were stalking me. They'd stare at me then start inching my way ... haven't liked them since.

Maybe they think you might taste good?

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Thats because so many people feed them, they are just waiting for you to throw some food out.
Same with seagulls at the beach. Reminds me of "The Birds" movie. When you get more about 15-20 or more birds hovering I just want to run and hide.

I like Crows and Ravens. I consider them part of my early warning system, letting me know what's happening in the woods.
I don't like grackles.

I am surprised by the number of people who don't know the difference between the two.
Crows are much larger then Grackles.
Grackles usually travel in much larger groups, are irridescent in color, and have yellow eyes (crows have dark eyes). Grackles act like mindless robots, crows have personality.
Ravens for the record are quite a bit larger then Crows, usually in pairs or small groups, and are actually often attacked by flocks of Crows.

http://www.crowbusters.com/whyhc.htm

I once heard a crow talk, like a parrot.."Hello..hellooo"

Interesting birds.

Well, I dont know about the state of Mo. hating crows, but this Missourian loves them! I have a close-knit family of 4 that patrol the rows in the orchard, eating bugs. Every other morning, they patrol. Never have I seen them eating garden seeds.
They are also more "polite" than chickens!

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In Life, We Weep at the thought of Death'
Who Knows, Perhaps in Death,
We Weep at the though of Life.

Okay, maybe 'hate' is not the word I was looking for, sorry 'bout that. Thanks for that link foxtrapper.

If the crows are responsible for damaging the populations of gamebirds then it is easily understood why the MDC has this law. Revenue from hunting is pretty important out here.

Lots of bird species impact the farmers fields. Have you ever seen what the Canadian geese or Trumpeter swans can do when they touch down in the cornfield?

I guess the part of it which somewhat suprised me was the use of that ELECTRONIC CALL. It just seemed so....unsportsman-like.

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Cows may not be smarter than People, but some cows are smarter than some people.

Michigan also has a season. Ends March 31st.
E Calls are used for lots of animals such coyoutes, coons and crows, It is the easy way like baiting deer. Lots of debate on the issue with sportsman.
Many sportsman all over the world hunt crows, like the Netherland that has a pie bald crow.
Sportsman normall gather the dead crows and feed them to there pigs or some thing. We sold ours to a little old church lady for a quarter each. The church had a fried chicken dinner every Friday for $5.00. I will not say the chicken was crow but I will not say it wasn't either.
Like chicken, ?? finger licken good, maybe.
Most sportsman would never kill off the whole rookery of crows.

Al

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Garden View Apiaries. Where the view is as sweet as the honey.
A member of SEMBA & MBA.

This could be one reason.

At the old farm two nieghbors thought it was OK to feed the crows, they had more and more crows, there wasn't enought food, so I would see a 100 or more killing all the native song birds, even the giant woodpecker babies, babier squirrels. I watched over 7 years, we went from dozens of different song birds and 4 types of woodpeckers, plus squirrels and so on...... to not seeing anything but crows.
Never saw anything like before. Talked to Fish and Game and they told me it was an on going problem. Killing Gangs they called them, to me they are Rats with wings.
They said things were out of balance with the City people moving to the country and feeding them..

Here we have two crows on the hill, is what the land can support. Luckily no one feeds the crows so we don't have the issue from the other farm.
But will tell you,, if I get more than that pair and their once a year babies(that grow up and move on) I will start shooting.
I don't want this area stripped of its Native Birds and Woodpeckers.

Am also talking about the Crows.... not the Ravens. I have heard Ravens talk but never crows.
Have a pair of Ravens that fly over this place a couple times of year and you know they are around because their call is so much louder and much deeper than the crows and Twice the size.

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Shari

I just "must" tell this story--one day we heard a bunch of crows over in the field, sounded as if they were fighting. Indeed they were, so focused on what they were doing, we walked right upon them. They were killing another crow! I dont know if it was a stranger to them, or what, but after getting them to leave, 2 were still on the ground, one clamped onto the bottom one, feet, and bill. We had to kick them apart (uh-uh, not me, to pull them) and the bottom one lay there for sometime, before he left.
Interloper? Corn Dealer? Who knows?

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In Life, We Weep at the thought of Death'
Who Knows, Perhaps in Death,
We Weep at the though of Life.

Hey.

Crows serve another purpose since they scavenge carcasses...a link in nature's decomposition chain. I tossed two of 'em a rabbit carcass and they picked it clean in 10 minutes.

RF

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Crows not only pull up the sprouting corn they ruin the ripe ears of corn. They shred the husks and eat about halfway down and then go on to the next ear. How disappointing after all the work getting the corn to eating stage.

..............Crows are just Coyotes with wings ! My job allows me to watch them for about four hours a day , until sunset . Scissortails and bluebirds will harrass crows if they get too uppity , but my favorite bird is the Road runner , Beep beep ! , fordy

I think the lines between love and hate can be drawn, at where the persons' livelihood is made. A farmer will naturally hate crows, or, he won't be in farming very long.

Same thing with wolves, coyotes, grizzly bears, and any other kind of predators... livestock producers are going to hate them vociferously... non livestock producers will think their cute, cuddly, and an integral part of the ecoystem.

Both sides are right.

At one time, I killed crows whenever I could. Now I don't. I may start up again, if EOTW arrives... I can't afford the luxury (that I can now) of allowing predators/varmints to harvest over half of my crops... and 90% of my orchard's fruit.

To put the 'eliminating varmints' concept into perspective... Would you willingly allow bank tellers to draw out 1/4 of all your earnings... Let grocery stores charge you 3x what you actually bought? Crows devastate corn fields... if you don't keep them away, they will take out every single grain of corn... and corn seed isn't cheap nowadays.

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Learning is not compulsory... neither is survival. W. Edwards Deming

Ravens are protected in England and at the Tower of London they have a flock that dates back appx. 400 years. Yes, they do talk, at least the ones at the Tower have. (documented)

Grackles are also a bird from England. Terrible creature. Smaller than a crow.

I love crows. They are so intelligent and have a sence of humor! I'm sure they are sensitive enough to know if you how you feel about them.

They mate for life, so remember that when you kill one.

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I have always wondered about those critters that mate for life? If their mate dies do they spend the rest of their life alone? Or like some people do thay just get so horny they find a new mate?
Just wondering, surely some one has studyed that?

Al

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Garden View Apiaries. Where the view is as sweet as the honey.
A member of SEMBA & MBA.

Crow is like a rat or mouse, become a real pest & take away from you if you are a farmer.

Those who don't understand, probably like them. Those who understand, don't have the words to explain it. You'd have to be there.

'Rats are cute creatures, you should love them, they don't do any harm.'

Those of you that have had rats in the feed bin, you can relate to how misguided that sounds.

One or 2 crows, oh how neat.

Until.......


Same with pocket gophers, moles, or priarie dogs. Because the control measures are successful, people don't see the problems thesecreatures cause, & then want to save them.

You don't want such prolific troublemakers to be saved!
--->Paul

we have had crows take the eyes out of new born lambs!

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