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The Birds
updated: Oct 26, 2012, 8:18 AM

By Edhat Subscriber

Question/Answer: Did anyone notice an EXTREME abundance of crows in the area of the Mentor Complex (Hollister & Patterson area) all the way out to Ralph's just before sundown this evening?

Remake of the Hitchcock movie? Any birders know what was going on with our corvid friends this evening? Sorry, my husband didn't think to snap a pic, but he was impressed with their massive numbers!

Comments in order of when they were received | (reverse order)

COMMENT 335806	2012-10-26 08:46 AM
Gang activity!
COMMENT 335807	2012-10-26 08:46 AM
I thought the same thing! I live off Walnut behind Ralphs and noticed them on my way home last night. I would say there was easily 100s of crows! Unfortunately I don't know anything about birds so I'm of no help, but definitely thought something seemed strange
SYVPEANUT	2012-10-26 08:49 AM
I thought they were all over at my house! Glad to hear they are flying over to Santa Barbara. Those walnut-eating-sons-of-guns have been using my yard as a dinner plate!
COMMENT 335810	2012-10-26 08:50 AM
I noticed a very large flock (murder) of crows on upper State Street last week. So many that myself and a co-worker stood at the window and watched them for awhile. They seemed to be focusing on the tops of palm trees. Perhaps something in there this time of year that draws them?
EZ2	2012-10-26 08:55 AM
Hitchcock
PURPLERIDER	2012-10-26 08:57 AM
EZ2, geez, this has gone to The Birds.
COMMENT 335816	2012-10-26 09:04 AM
I saw the same thing near Lake Los Carneros about a week ago. Thousands of them flying everywhere. It was crazy
COMMENT 335818	2012-10-26 09:05 AM
About a week ago I saw a large murder of crows right around the intersection of Hollister and Aero Camino near the airport. There had to be hundreds of them and even as I was driving by I could hear their loud squawking over my car's engine noise. I did wonder if they might interrupt airport operations at the time. I kept a lookout for Tippi Hedren, but she was nowhere to be found....
COMMENT 335821P	2012-10-26 09:09 AM
just watched the HBO film "The Girl" last night, based upon Tippi Hedren's ordeal working for Hitchcock in making "The Birds"......nightmarish, and when I read this post about the crows, couldn't help think about that.....
COMMENT 335824	2012-10-26 09:11 AM
I live behind Ralph's as well and this always happens around this time of year. There are mornings when I go out to get the paper and there will be 100 crows on my lawn or on the telephone lines. Kinda creepy, but I like it.
COMMENT 335825	2012-10-26 09:12 AM
awesome! I love them.
COMMENT 335828	2012-10-26 09:18 AM
The crows are probably there for some good eats, fruit trees, walnuts etc. Some one or a neighborhood has something out for them, they clean up the tops of the trees. Considering the area also has "Walnut Lane", I would guess it is walnuts. They are crafty birds, they will pick up a nut, drop it in the street and wait for a car to break it open for them. They also harass hawks; probably what they were doing around a palm tree. I used to be annoyed by the large number that visit our place, but now I enjoy watching their antics, they have a tree that is "theirs" and if a hawk should get too close they send out the alert and crows stream in from all over defending their tree (probably a nest in there too)
D8VANILLA	2012-10-26 09:27 AM
Careful, Crows have perfect facial recognition, so you better be nice! And, they will pass the info to their offspring and to other crows if you have been a bad human. But, if you are nice, they will bring you presents and shiney objects. Watch the semi-documentary "A Murder of Crows", and your negative opinion will do a 180*
COMMENT 335834	2012-10-26 09:27 AM
Must be a slow news day in Santa Barbara.
COMMENT 335838	2012-10-26 09:36 AM
Agree with 824 - I used to live in the Hollipat complex by the ER entrance, and they would mob on occasion in huge numbers. I always assumed the fields behind the hospital, down towards the bike paths, were being harvested or plowed or something, but perhaps it's just walnut season. They definitely were something to look at (although I do not miss the cawing for such long periods!). Had quite a few crows near Oak Park in the last few days. I'm guessing they are going after the acorns there, as every time I walk in the park I hear acorns falling all around me. Oh, and palm trees do contain seeds/fruits that they eat, so a hawk/raptor isn't the only reason they land on the palms.
COMMENT 335843P	2012-10-26 10:04 AM
834, I always thought that Edhater's choose what is news meaning I don't think that there is such a thing as a slow news day on Edhat. I could be wrong....
COMMENT 335845	2012-10-26 10:08 AM
You'll find them where the food is. In Mission Canyon they're usually around Rocky Nook park. Look for parks with sloppy picnickers, open dumpsters, creeks.
COMMENT 335851	2012-10-26 10:15 AM
In my opinion, when the news is slow, these are the stories that are most commented on. For example, the maple syrup shortage story or the dying cacti.
COMMENT 335853	2012-10-26 10:16 AM
Yes... A "murder" of crows doing battle in the war with the Brown tail hawks. Bring on the "crow wars!"
COMMENT 335857	2012-10-26 10:22 AM
They were all at the lane farms corn maze!
COMMENT 335860	2012-10-26 10:31 AM
They are fascinating to watch. We have a whole army of them here in upper North La Cumbre. At intervals and individually, they casually fly from tree to tree with loud exclamations for a while, then they will settle in one tree for what seems to be a long conference on where to go next! We have a family who visit us each morning and they are so intelligent.
COMMENT 335862	2012-10-26 10:32 AM
they were even on the beach out at Devereux!
COMMENT 335867	2012-10-26 10:44 AM
When I lived on San Simeon I hated being woken up early by the boisterousness of flocks that gathered at this time of year over the orchards around San Marcos Farms. I'm not up late drinking any more so I can appreciate them as the urban "wildlife" they are... and getting up early is now a good thing.
COMMENT 335868	2012-10-26 10:49 AM
They gather in flocks during the winter and then disperse during the summer to forage. This must be time for the gathering. The people with the tree that they pick to live in during the winter must be tolerant people because the crows always remind me of teenagers- noisy and boisterous. They come to steal the birdseed I put out for the sparrows but are very cautious about being there when I am around- I guess a lot of people shoot at them or otherwise try to discourage their presence.
COMMENT 335881	2012-10-26 11:22 AM
It's not just here, the crows have taken over. All over the world the crows have destroyed songbird populations and overrun bird habitats. Remember songbirds? I have seen this first hand in the US, Mexico, Thailand, Nepal, Canada and Bali. They are a very successful invasive species, sorta like us.
COMMENT 335887	2012-10-26 11:34 AM
It'll be us, crows, and cockroaches left, when the end times come.
COMMENT 335888P	2012-10-26 11:37 AM
A murder! All these years, and I never looked it up. Google "etymology murder of crows" for word fun.
ECHO	2012-10-26 11:57 AM
I live in the area too, and notice them around this time of year, more so in late afternoon/evening before the sunsets. We also get a lot of mocking birds certain times of the year that seem so loud at night.
COMMENT 335895	2012-10-26 12:04 PM
I thoroughly dislike crows. They rob the fruit from my orchard. I wish there was some legal way to eliminate them. A couple time I have captured them in my chicken coop and drove them to exhausted panic before releasing them. I was hoping they would communicate to others.
YIN YANG	2012-10-26 12:18 PM
Echo, a neighbor once had a mockingbird take up his post by a bedroom window. In mating season. Darn thing mocked, sang and talked all night long. I'm not sure I'd wish that on an enemy! I have a "crow tree" very close to my abode. They let me know when to look for hawks and I must admit to being relieved that they only gather, and don't roost, so I don't hear them at dawn.
COMMENT 335904	2012-10-26 12:37 PM
Crows are indeed very smart and do recognize human faces. D8 Vanilla has it right. If you are nice to them they will be nice to you, if not they will mess with you all day. One house I lived in, we had hundreds fly over each evening. They liked me, caused no problems. My next door neighbor, he messed with them all the time, so they gave it back in spades! Hassled him, his wife, their dogs, their kids. It's wise not to fool with Mother Nature! Cooperate instead and realize we are here to share with the other children. Crows are also very comical at times, they're goofy! Funny to watch some of their antics.
EMUWREN1	2012-10-26 01:11 PM
Crows are capable of imitating the human voice, too. A friend rescued and kept a "pet" crow. It learned to say its name and a few words. Sometimes you hear what I call a "bell-like" tone. That is the crows. I like that the crows let me know where the birds of prey are. "My" crows love me and I love them. I have yet to see a one of them eat birdseed, however, as in proso millet. SBCC had an ornithology class, back in the summer of 1989. Too bad it got axed, and was never offered again. Rob Lindsay was the instructor. He said something I will never forget: he said if he could come back as ANY species of bird, he would come back as a crow. Rob said crows are smart, and can use their beaks like tweezers or like a chisel. He said they are the coolest birds. They sure as heck do recognize individual humans. Crows have a long memory. I have never had one bring me a "shiny" gift. Or---- maybe that's why I keep finding little candy wrappers in my back yard---especially right after Halloween? Am I being gifted?
STRAY	2012-10-26 01:12 PM
The migration of hundreds of crows from the HolliPat area to the east happens in the morning; at sunset, the crows return from their daytime hangout. Their nighttime roost has been identified. Where do they congregate during the daylight hours?
COMMENT 335921	2012-10-26 01:22 PM
California and Federal Fish and Game Law allows a landowner or a tenant to take (ie kill) crows that are engaging in destructive acts against private property, or that constitute a health hazard. Crows may be taken through the use of firearms, bows, falconry, or by an approved poison. Crows are also known to be a key factor in the spread of West Nile Virus.
COMMENT 335942	2012-10-26 02:01 PM
Been watching them since 79, normal for this time of year.
COMMENT 335972	2012-10-26 03:34 PM
Told you they were cautious, for good reason. Open season on crows for some people.
COMMENT 335974	2012-10-26 03:37 PM
921 - falconry? Wow, that actually sounds kind of fun in a sick way. Now, where to get a falcon.......
AQUAHOLIC	2012-10-26 03:38 PM
The crows in my hood like to use our birdbath as their personal 'stale bread reconstitution site'... so clever.
COMMENT 335981P	2012-10-26 03:56 PM
Our neighborhood normally has lots of songbirds. But every couple of years large numbers of crows show up and wipe out ALL the other birds. They eat the eggs, eat the chicks that do hatch, then drive off all the much smaller songbirds. Years ago, when I lived on a ranch, whenever a large flock of crows would show up to strip the fruit trees, we would blast one or two of them with a shotgun. The others would immediately fly off and not be seen again. They do seem to remember when a particular place is dangerous and avoid it. Wish I could blast them now to save our neighborhood.
COMMENT 335987	2012-10-26 04:09 PM
As usual, Edhat has allowed the disinformationers to spread malarkey! Crows are not a SOURCE of West Nile. Crows are victims of West Nile. They die within a week of exposure. They are, in fact, one of the most susceptible species. Crows are native species, they are not invaders. Indeed, crows have suffered greatly due to West Nile. The American Crow population has been reduced by almost half due to the disease.
COMMENT 336021	2012-10-26 05:39 PM
A Murder of Crows is a must see. I live in the foothills with a huge walnut tree dropping gobs of shells right now. They come up here and hang in huge numbers, than drop the nuts on the road below and fight over it in the air. they are one smart bunch of birds.
COMMENT 336025	2012-10-26 05:49 PM
WOW! A binder of crows!
COMMENT 336089	2012-10-27 08:20 AM
5921..... It's comments like yours that reminds us not to believe everything we read on the Internets.
COMMENT 336098	2012-10-27 09:13 AM
Years ago when our family lived across from the playground of the Catholic school between San Roque Rd. and Argonne Circle the crows would "attack" our walnut tree. Our dog would hide and be quiet and wait until they dropped a walnut on the concrete walk and it split open. Then she'd chase the crows away and eat the walnut. So I guess maybe that's why the crows didn't stick around very long since they figured out they might not get the walnut they dropped onto the concrete.
COMMENT 336111	2012-10-27 09:52 AM
We have hundreds in the Guitierrez/Cesar Chavez area.
DRBUD	2012-10-27 02:34 PM
I am so glad to see that I am not the only one distressed about the over whelming invasion of crows- (rats of the air)-in our state and other states and countrys as well. At my age I remember a time when we had beau coup song birds sourrounding us. No more! On my farm in Virginia when they attacked my just ripening walnuts, I would pick off a few with my 22 gauge telescopic rifle and then hang one or two carcases in each tree. NO problem after that! Someone told me they are even on a protected species list. What a gross error!!
COMMENT 336250P	2012-10-27 04:48 PM
To all those who aren't yet familiar with living up-close with crows, let me share some of my experiences. They are filthy, dirty birds and their raucous, non-melodic screech will wake you out of the deepest sleep at sunrise. They are NOT attractive in any way at all, unless you like big, crude, noisy, messy, intrusive, disrespectful, aggressive neighbors constantly disrupting the peace and quiet we all need in our back yards. They are vicious predators who I have observed chasing nesting birds away from their nests, so they can swoop in and eat the eggs of robins, sparrows, mockingbirds, and all manner of other more welcome species of birds in the trees in our neighborhood. There is good reason some counties and some municipalities put a bounty on dead crows. Think about it before you wax so enthusiastic about their malevolent presence in a new neighborhood.
RAINE5360	2012-10-27 09:24 PM
Noticed this about a year ago on the Hollister Ave medical building next to Goleta Valley Hospital. Must be a season migration or something.
COMMENT 336308P	2012-10-27 09:30 PM
I don't disagree with Dr. Bud and 250. Crows are, among other characterizations, pests, and they eat a lot. And ALL predators are "vicious," as defined by us sophisticated, non-savage humans. ;-) It's a useless anthropomorphic term. Thanks for the science, 987. Here's some more: MOSQUITOES transmit West Nile Virus. Birds, just like humans, get it from them and die. Corvids are an indicator species for us humans (AKA canaries in a coal mine), so we know when there are lots of West Nile Virus-infected mosquitoes in our areas and humans can take protection and alter the environment. To verify what the corvids died of, Animal services (county not city) takes reports and ships viable bodies to UC Davis for testing, and the state set up a WNV hotline to receive calls about dead birds from citizens, maybe in the early 2000's. http://westnile.ca.gov/ West Nile took out appprox. 45% the population of crows -- in places? I think nationwide. Did anyone notice? I sure didn't. Might be a good thing, considering how healthy the populations look. Might be a good thing for other populations too. Are they as big a problem since WNV surfaced? "Since the introduction of the mosquito-borne West Nile Virus (WNV) into New York City (NYC) in 1999, it has expanded westward across the North American continent in an unprecedented fashion, taking in its wake hundreds of thousands and possibly millions of native and exotic birds. Corvid species, particularly the American crow, are particularly susceptible to this virulent strain of virus and have died dramatically during the summer virus transmission season. West Nile Virus: Impact on Crow Populations in the United States , Robert G. McLean USDA APHIS Wildlife Services, National Wildlife Research Center, Fort Collins, Colorado" (the link is HUMONGUOUS but easily found with Google.) I can only imagine what I would think of them if I was a farmer. I'd certainly want a "sound cannon" in my fields. And a shot gun. But one who did so would be reported as a pest to neighbors, then for criminal reasons. Too lazy to look into actual state and fed law but found this, which contains some applicable citations: "Crows damaging crops? Question: I am having problems with crows damaging my crops. ... Since “corvids”are... [ more ]
COMMENT 336311P	2012-10-27 09:36 PM
Yeah, I'm long-winded, but it keeps me off the streets and out of of trouble. Part Deux: Too lazy to look into actual state and fed law but found this, which contains some applicable citations: "Crows damaging crops? Question: I am having problems with crows damaging my crops. ... Since “corvids”are very problematic predators for song birds and marbled murrelets on the coast, can landowners get a depredation permit for either species? If so, where? Answer: There is no hunting season for ravens. They are protected by the federal Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA). Check with the Permit Office of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) at www.fws.gov/permits/. Crows are also protected by the MBTA, but there is an open hunting season between December and April each year (CCR Title 14, section 485). In addition, both Federal (50 CFR 21.43 www.gpoaccess.gov/cfr/index.html) and state regulations (CCR Title 14 section 472(d) http://weblinks.westlaw.com) permit the take of crows that are found committing or about to commit depredations on ornamental or shade trees or agricultural crops. Several specific conditions apply to the use of these regulations to address depredation by crows so be sure to read the regulations on the links provided. http://californiaoutdoorsqas.com/2010/06/03/access-rights-to-public-waterways/ Now, to get on to the issue of those durned bothersome pigeons and sea gulls! I've been chased and almost attacked by a gull and I've never fed one! And I once WAS attacked, on my skull/scalp, by a nesting blackbird. That's how I got injured taking public transportation. It happened walking to the bus stop.
CORKY	2012-10-27 10:17 PM
They seem to be congregating on my front lawn near Foothill school off Cathedral Oaks.
CORKY	2012-10-27 10:21 PM
They are very smart and I find them amusing.
COMMENT 336356P	2012-10-28 07:23 AM
Humans are mean, vicious and predatory too...and let's not forget, arrogant. A typical human reaction is to over-analyze. Why not just enjoy the wonder of nature?

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