Pied Crow

Overview

The pied crow (Corvus albus) is a widely distributed African bird species in the crow genus of the family Corvidae. It is Africa's most widespread member of the genus Corvus, though it is structurally better thought of as a small crow-sized raven that can hybridise with the Somali crow where their ranges meet.

Identification

• Size similar to the European carrion crow but with a proportionately larger bill, slightly longer tail and wings, and longer legs.
• Glossy black head and neck interrupted by a large area of white feathering from the shoulders down to the lower breast; tail, bill, and wings are black.
• Eyes are dark brown, and immature birds often have white plumage mixed with black.
• Voice is described as a harsh ar-ar-ar-ar or karh-karh-karh.

Habitat

Found in sub-Saharan Africa, including Nigeria, Ghana, Senegal, Sudan, Somalia, Eritrea, Zambia, Botswana, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, South Africa, Madagascar, and several islands such as the Comoros, Aldabra, and Zanzibar. It inhabits mainly open country with villages and towns nearby and rarely occurs far from human habitation, except in Eritrea. The species does not occur in the equatorial rainforest region.

Diet

Food is obtained from the ground or trees, including insects, small invertebrates, small reptiles, small mammals, young birds, eggs, grain, peanuts, carrion, human food scraps, and fruit. The bird has been recorded killing and eating roosting fruit bats and is frequently seen scavenging around slaughterhouses, sometimes in huge numbers.

Did you know?

The Maasai people call the bird ol-korrok after the sound of its call, considering it annoying but not a bird of ill omen. The species has a restricted digestive capacity that allows it to consume greater than half its body weight in food per day while maintaining a slender weight for swift flight.