A black crow flies over - but is it a Crow, a Rook or even a Raven? Let this video help you to separate these confusing species, along with their smaller cousins: Jackdaw and Chough
Thanks! I can hear Crows, Rooks, Jackdaws and Ravens in my garden and tell the difference between each one. When the ravens fly over the sound from their wing beat is very audible.
Phil Curran don't think there's much truth to the saying as I regularly see rooks alone or in pairs. But they are more likely to be seen in groups often with jackdaw
Fascinating...so all those young rooks are actually jackdaws... I feed them fairly regularly various fruits and nuts...there are big trees they nest in out back...
Jackdaws are commonest round here and easy to identify - especially when they fall down your chimney and appear in the living room! Ask me how I know, haha! I forgave them of course, and their squabbling chatter is lovely to hear!
My best friend at school, in the 1970’s, took me to her grandmothers to meet the Jackdaw that her grandmother had hand raised. Then released outside. He never _really_ left though. Obviously he was called Jack. Grandmother had a barn style split back door that led into her kitchen, so Jack would sit on the top of the door looking into the kitchen and we found that very funny. Jackdaw Jack on a door! But his biggest party piece was he talked. Just like a parrot he said sentences. Really made me appreciate how handsome and how clever the corvids are.
A friend took a photo of black birds in the snow, not knowing what they are, we google it and now we are watching this video. Learning something new is a good thing aye?
I have definitely seen Carrion crows and jackdaws playfully tumbling, especially the former. I see crows every day swooping around the updrafts from tall buildings. I've seen other acrobatics too, I don't know how much the other corvids indulge in this.
superb, now i can show my mum what an idiot she was for contesting the rook that was in my garden which she called a crow. actually maybe it was a raven. oh dear maybe i am the idiot. please don't let my mum watch this.
I'm glad I gound this video. We have several of these species closeby, and it was hard to work out which was which. And one is causing a lot of racket outside the flat. Jackdaws. You don't need to see them to identify them.
No, it's because the narrator carelessly speaks over the sounds of all birds she's announcing except the crow. The raven segment is really frustrating, I almost disliked the video but it's corvids, I really like them, so I ended up liking and saving it.
A great video which was well presented and informative. Thankyou... When you think of the name Jackdaw ,Raven or Rook, the stigma attached to their relative, the crow doesn't spring to mind. I think the Crow is a handsome bird as well as being one of the smartest birds out there. Strange what the colour black does to the human psyche😢
Thanks for this. I sometimes struggle to separate the crows from the rooks though the jackdaws & choughs are easier. I now live in Cornwall where corvids of all types are very common compared to Kent where I grew up. I don't think it would be an exaggeration to say that I see more corvids than gulls here.
We have a massive amount of rook nests at the end of our road (I'm in West Central Scotland) and they are pretty big. They spread out and you never see just one lol
Thank you. I come from North America and was not accustomed to seeing rooks, which are heavy about the area of Ireland I am now living in. I noticed their grey, knife-like beaks and suspected that they were rooks and not crows (which are neater and as stated here have black, narrower bills), but it is good to be able to check and know what else to look and listen for.
I'm also happy to learn that the lighter-necked birds I often see are jackdaws. They remind me of some kinds of American blackbirds, the red-winged blackbird having been common in the area I grew up and I suspect a bit similar in stature.
The Carrion Crow closely resembles the American Crow, judging by its appearance. Now, I've never seen a Carrion Crow, but I'm very familiar of an American Crow.
+David Colantuono They are very similar - although they are different species. Definitely a case of two species filling the same ecological niche and looking very, very similar! Not sure how you would tell the two apart, either, if they did ever meet!
Useful video, but in Czech Republic we usually call everything as crow, especially rooks :( Ravens are rare, bigger, lonely and known for eating carcass ... Crows are likely always grey here, they stay all year and they are not rare and not plentiful either. They are mostly on fields and city parks. Rooks are very plentiful in winter (late October to early March) and they form very large flocks in mornings and evenings and migrate twice a day to and from some resting places (with perhaps hundred of them on a single tree). They are not present in summer. Jackdaws are in small flocks (5-30 pieces) and they make different sounds. They are mostly in city parks and they seem to join rooks in winter. Im not sure if day have daily migration cycles such as rooks.
So initially I thought it was a jackdaw. I know nothing about birds but I see it was a hooded Crow that I have befriended and now I am feeding😂😮❤❤🕊🦅🦆 outside my backdoor in Dublin Ireland all day I see him and I feed him now that it has become warmer❤
Very very interesting. Thank you. In April I was alerted to two magpies in a state of alarm on a nearby roof. A huge all black bird was waddling around the roof gutter. Eventually it flew off, mobbed and dive bombed by the magpies. It was noticeably bigger than the magpies. This was a short distance from Derby city centre. You wouldn't get ravens here would you?
Hi Lynn. Ravens are fairly common in Derbyshire but I suspect you are right that it would be unusual to see one close to Derby city centre. Carrion Crows are quite a bit bigger than Magpies (particularly if you just focus on the head and body, rather than including the tail). For a definitive answer about the likelihood of it being a Raven, you could contact the Derbyshire Ornithological Society: www.derbyshireos.org.uk/cgifeedback.php Nick BTO Training Manager
I was just intrested to see what said on here and watched the video... You stated that rooks won't feed with crows... I'm a bus driver, and I have a point where I stop very regularly for 10 - 20 mins lay over, so I always bring nuts to feed the birds... The second I get off the bus I always have my same two crows instantly come to me, after a few more mins there will be a gang of rooks but my two Crow friends have no problem with staying and eating the nuts?
If you listen carefully starting at 2:53 she says that fledgling rooks can look very similar to crows but the give away is that the adult rook wouldn't be feeding a crow. Not that crows and rooks won't feed near each other.
"the tail is graduated" - what does that mean? With such similar species it might be helpful to compare species directly e.g. a static comparison of the crows in flight. These guides are so useful for beginners but I wonder if they are tested on target audiences before being posted.
_"These guides are so useful for beginners but..."_ Surely beginners would be even more confused by verbal descriptions like, _"the tail is graduated"_ Colin? It would have helped beginners a lot more, if she'd said; _"the tail is diamond rather than wedge shaped"._
What are the ones that are big(usually 2 together in my yard each morning. They're so black i see a beautiful blue sheen of color! What kind of bird is this? Im in NC
+Theresa Thompson NC - In the USA? If so, there are several options: American Crow or Fish Crow most likely neither of which are covered here - we are a UK-based charity...
I think (although I'm no expert, so don't quote me) that you're far enough south that you would get western ravens. The plumage is shiny, too, so that might be the bird. This article would seem to suggest that you're a little far east for them, but you never know: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_raven American crows in the northeast are pretty large and slightly shiny, but they are just crows, not ravens.
Exellent video. O have two hooded Crows (An old pair) that i have knoen and studied in soon 6 years. And i live them! They come When i call..and i When they call! Haha, we own each other! They are so indcredibly intelligent. But i have too move in 1 Mont so i have to say my goodbye ;(
Thanks, I now know the corvids around my flat that I want to befriend so they bring me shiny things and eventually raid jewellers for me are jackdaws, cool. 😁
Hi Andi. Magpies (and Jays) are also members of the corvid family. However, this video focusses on the ones with all or predominantly black plumage that can be hard to tell apart. As Magpies have extensive areas of white in their plumage and a characteristic long tail, they were left out so as to devote more time to the typical confusion species.
I wish they had given more details about the hooded crows too instead of just a mere mention. Hooded crows and jackdaws are very numerous in my town. Ravens are a bit more rare, I sometimes see a couple of them in the countryside, they're the most beautiful and fascinating. They're monogamous and I love to see them flying very close in the sky as if they were dancing, plus their cry is more gentle and relaxing than it seems, certainly far less noisy and chaotic than hooded crows's calls.
For the Calls:
Crows: 1:41;
Rooks: 2:06 and 3:23;
Ravens: 4:32;
Jackdaw: 5:03;
Chough: 6:32
*Bonus: Blue Jays are also part of the corvidae family.
So are magpies.
@@philsaspiezone Magpies are an obvious, but Blue Jays were a surprise.
No Bluejays in the UK, we have just Jays.
"... a pot belly, a highly peaked crown, and splendid baggy pantelons." Lol. That's some hilarious use of language there.
Makes me wonder how many times I've seen a "massive crow" that was actually a raven.
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@@loadapish yes
Thanks! I can hear Crows, Rooks, Jackdaws and Ravens in my garden and tell the difference between each one. When the ravens fly over the sound from their wing beat is very audible.
Corvids, magnificent corvids.
I got the crow and raven one down. You see a group of crows, you think "oow, crows" you see a group of ravens you think "oh shit, what happened?"
Fascinating birds. I find interesting how Jackdaws can sometimes nest in rabbit burrows and I would love to witness a sighting of that one day.
I often used to think "huh, why does a crow make two different noises"
Now I know that it was a crow and a jackdaw
Rooks are basically bin bags with beaks
Steven Reid hahaha I laughed a bit too loudly at this joke
There is an old country saying; "See a rook on its own, it's a crow. See lots of crows together, they are rooks."
Phil Curran don't think there's much truth to the saying as I regularly see rooks alone or in pairs. But they are more likely to be seen in groups often with jackdaw
Fascinating...so all those young rooks are actually jackdaws... I feed them fairly regularly various fruits and nuts...there are big trees they nest in out back...
Phil Curran ש
Here in the US, our American crows are pretty gregarious and social.
Roses of Time omg so kind of u, here in my neighborhood they kill rooks:/
Thank you for this...I think the guys here in Ireland are rooks, but everyone calls them crows... good to know the difference...
You always get a excellent description from bto.
Only just discovered these clips on TH-cam, absolutely love them! Thank you to all at BTOVideo :)
Fantastic. I've never been able to tell the difference before
Glad it was helpful!
Brilliant video - very helpful - better than looking at pictures :) thank you ! ♥
Jackdaws are commonest round here and easy to identify - especially when they fall down your chimney and appear in the living room! Ask me how I know, haha!
I forgave them of course, and their squabbling chatter is lovely to hear!
My best friend at school, in the 1970’s, took me to her grandmothers to meet the Jackdaw that her grandmother had hand raised. Then released outside. He never _really_ left though.
Obviously he was called Jack. Grandmother had a barn style split back door that led into her kitchen, so Jack would sit on the top of the door looking into the kitchen and we found that very funny. Jackdaw Jack on a door! But his biggest party piece was he talked. Just like a parrot he said sentences.
Really made me appreciate how handsome and how clever the corvids are.
I think I was right when I saw a couple of ravens near my new house. How lovely. It was their size and call that gave them away
Great video and very entertaining use of language. Answered many longstanding questions.
A friend took a photo of black birds in the snow, not knowing what they are, we google it and now we are watching this video. Learning something new is a good thing aye?
This was beautiful and at times almost poetic
This is a fantastic video for corvid ID. I'll go to BTO every time from now.
Thanks for this informative video, we identified the large flock of Jackdaws that frequent Matlock around June.
Thank you so much for the detailed explanation of all of them. I have just been feeding Jackdaws, now I know what they are lol
Thank you Su for the wonderful narration❤
What very generous videos these are! Thank you. x
This is a brilliant video, sorts out all the confusion of Rooks,Crows ,Ravens and Jackdaws.
Excellent video... thank you. Twice saw a single raven at Sharpthorne, W Sussex, on 2nd and 3rd Oct 2021. Impressive corvid!
I have definitely seen Carrion crows and jackdaws playfully tumbling, especially the former. I see crows every day swooping around the updrafts from tall buildings. I've seen other acrobatics too, I don't know how much the other corvids indulge in this.
One of my favourite qualities about birding language is the usage of endearing memory strategies, like the carrion crow's "deportment lessons".
Lovely video, so well presented, thank you! 🙏
superb, now i can show my mum what an idiot she was for contesting the rook that was in my garden which she called a crow. actually maybe it was a raven. oh dear maybe i am the idiot. please don't let my mum watch this.
Here in Ireland many people call rooks crows generally... they are of Corvid family
You would know if it was a Raven. They are huge.
In german we call rooks 'Saatkrähen', which means "seed crows"
Excellent! I found this very helpful!
Excellent short film
I'm glad I gound this video. We have several of these species closeby, and it was hard to work out which was which. And one is causing a lot of racket outside the flat. Jackdaws. You don't need to see them to identify them.
Jackdaws remind me of our Camp Robbers here in the US, also called camp robber jays. Interesting! Thanks for the education in corvids.
I love this video very much. Very helpful. Exactly what I needed.
Great video. I now know that if I ever see a giant male blackbird I will know it's a young chough. 😀
Now i know the difference, super vidio, wonderfull birds, many thanks.
Brilliant video well explained, Just what I was looking for. Thanks
Very informative, many thanks
This channel is horribly underrated, it needs more attention!
@LengKingg There is nothing horrible about it. It is wonderful.
Thanks for this . hard to keep in my mind but i love them all
Who the hell downvoted this? Gamekeepers and farmers no doubt.
Yea they are idiots and don’t care about our native wildlife*
Assholes, i think.
No, it's because the narrator carelessly speaks over the sounds of all birds she's announcing except the crow. The raven segment is really frustrating, I almost disliked the video but it's corvids, I really like them, so I ended up liking and saving it.
@@spechtmeise9185 wwwhhhyyy
People can downvote the video but still like corvids. Maybe they didn't like the tone.
Thanks for this video. This is really informative. 👍
Very interesting video. Thank you.
Thank you - very interesting!
A great video which was well presented and informative.
Thankyou...
When you think of the name Jackdaw ,Raven or Rook, the stigma attached to their relative, the crow doesn't spring to mind. I think the Crow is a handsome bird as well as being one of the smartest birds out there.
Strange what the colour black does to the human psyche😢
So beautiful and clever
Why thank you Ann. You're not so bad yourself *wink lol
Very Very useful. Thank you!
It's a great video, I now know that our sociable bird is a Jackdaw.
I've never been able to tell them apart and still can't unless they're together.
Thanks for this. I sometimes struggle to separate the crows from the rooks though the jackdaws & choughs are easier. I now live in Cornwall where corvids of all types are very common compared to Kent where I grew up. I don't think it would be an exaggeration to say that I see more corvids than gulls here.
The ravens near me croak a lot, they're always muttering about something.
This was really useful, thank you!
Very interesting. I often wondered about the differences, and not just because of my name. :)
+BTOvideo i have a baby barn swallow..i rescue it in the river...wht should i feed to it...
We have a massive amount of rook nests at the end of our road (I'm in West Central Scotland) and they are pretty big. They spread out and you never see just one lol
Wonderful. Thank you
My favourite bird!
Thank you. I come from North America and was not accustomed to seeing rooks, which are heavy about the area of Ireland I am now living in. I noticed their grey, knife-like beaks and suspected that they were rooks and not crows (which are neater and as stated here have black, narrower bills), but it is good to be able to check and know what else to look and listen for.
I'm also happy to learn that the lighter-necked birds I often see are jackdaws. They remind me of some kinds of American blackbirds, the red-winged blackbird having been common in the area I grew up and I suspect a bit similar in stature.
I enjoyed it. 💕
excellent vid, very useful thanks...
Splendid baggy pantaloons? Sign me up Rook.
The Carrion Crow closely resembles the American Crow, judging by its appearance. Now, I've never seen a Carrion Crow, but I'm very familiar of an American Crow.
+David Colantuono They are very similar - although they are different species. Definitely a case of two species filling the same ecological niche and looking very, very similar! Not sure how you would tell the two apart, either, if they did ever meet!
Carrion Crow is bigger
I love rooks - around all seasons where I live - the Ronnie Wood of the bird world.
Very useful, thanks.
Brill video, thanks very much
Love this 👍👍👍
Thanks. 10/10 for enjoyment.
They're pretty easy to identify in this part of the world--generally, the only large black birds we have are just crows.
Love this
At first glance, Raven can be mistaken for crow but their wings are longer and wider like a buzzard
Thank you, wonderful
You're welcome, gorgeous! lol
Why did you leave out magpies?
Forst time I saw a Raven was at 12k feet in Colorado and I was in awe of its size!!
a special thanks to the work of Simon Elliott!
Useful video, but in Czech Republic we usually call everything as crow, especially rooks :(
Ravens are rare, bigger, lonely and known for eating carcass ...
Crows are likely always grey here, they stay all year and they are not rare and not plentiful either. They are mostly on fields and city parks.
Rooks are very plentiful in winter (late October to early March) and they form very large flocks in mornings and evenings and migrate twice a day to and from some resting places (with perhaps hundred of them on a single tree). They are not present in summer.
Jackdaws are in small flocks (5-30 pieces) and they make different sounds. They are mostly in city parks and they seem to join rooks in winter. Im not sure if day have daily migration cycles such as rooks.
Corvids are superb
Wow very good video
The flying jackdaw kind of looks a lot like a flying sparrowhawk in the wind to me.
So initially I thought it was a jackdaw. I know nothing about birds but I see it was a hooded Crow that I have befriended and now I am feeding😂😮❤❤🕊🦅🦆 outside my backdoor in Dublin Ireland all day I see him and I feed him now that it has become warmer❤
Very very interesting. Thank you. In April I was alerted to two magpies in a state of alarm on a nearby roof. A huge all black bird was waddling around the roof gutter. Eventually it flew off, mobbed and dive bombed by the magpies. It was noticeably bigger than the magpies. This was a short distance from Derby city centre. You wouldn't get ravens here would you?
Hi Lynn. Ravens are fairly common in Derbyshire but I suspect you are right that it would be unusual to see one close to Derby city centre. Carrion Crows are quite a bit bigger than Magpies (particularly if you just focus on the head and body, rather than including the tail). For a definitive answer about the likelihood of it being a Raven, you could contact the Derbyshire Ornithological Society: www.derbyshireos.org.uk/cgifeedback.php
Nick
BTO Training Manager
I was just intrested to see what said on here and watched the video... You stated that rooks won't feed with crows... I'm a bus driver, and I have a point where I stop very regularly for 10 - 20 mins lay over, so I always bring nuts to feed the birds... The second I get off the bus I always have my same two crows instantly come to me, after a few more mins there will be a gang of rooks but my two Crow friends have no problem with staying and eating the nuts?
If you listen carefully starting at 2:53 she says that fledgling rooks can look very similar to crows but the give away is that the adult rook wouldn't be feeding a crow. Not that crows and rooks won't feed near each other.
@@alrivers2297 ahh my bad
"the tail is graduated" - what does that mean? With such similar species it might be helpful to compare species directly e.g. a static comparison of the crows in flight. These guides are so useful for beginners but I wonder if they are tested on target audiences before being posted.
_"These guides are so useful for beginners but..."_ Surely beginners would be even more confused by verbal descriptions like, _"the tail is graduated"_ Colin? It would have helped beginners a lot more, if she'd said; _"the tail is diamond rather than wedge shaped"._
What are the ones that are big(usually 2 together in my yard each morning. They're so black i see a beautiful blue sheen of color! What kind of bird is this? Im in NC
+Theresa Thompson NC - In the USA? If so, there are several options: American Crow or Fish Crow most likely neither of which are covered here - we are a UK-based charity...
+BTOvideo yes NC, USA
I think (although I'm no expert, so don't quote me) that you're far enough south that you would get western ravens. The plumage is shiny, too, so that might be the bird. This article would seem to suggest that you're a little far east for them, but you never know:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_raven
American crows in the northeast are pretty large and slightly shiny, but they are just crows, not ravens.
@@BTOvideo Raven's can always be mistaken as Crows, but their wings are wider and longer, and in flight they looked like buzzards at distance
Bird calls:
1:42 Crow
2:08 Rook
4:33 Raven
5:05 Jackdaw
6:34 Chough
thank you!
Excellent l D Video
Exellent video. O have two hooded Crows (An old pair) that i have knoen and studied in soon 6 years. And i live them! They come When i call..and i When they call! Haha, we own each other! They are so indcredibly intelligent. But i have too move in 1 Mont so i have to say my goodbye ;(
liva ladelund Ur damn beautiful
We have Hoded Crow, Magpies, Jackdaw.
Almost every Corvid.
but why is a raven like a writing desk?
the genus Corvus is the birds version of the genus Homo.
Where do crows nest then?
Trees
These are the best birds on the planet.
I agree, but farmers hate them.
Thanks, I now know the corvids around my flat that I want to befriend so they bring me shiny things and eventually raid jewellers for me are jackdaws, cool. 😁
Does the Magpie fit into this group?
Hi Andi. Magpies (and Jays) are also members of the corvid family. However, this video focusses on the ones with all or predominantly black plumage that can be hard to tell apart. As Magpies have extensive areas of white in their plumage and a characteristic long tail, they were left out so as to devote more time to the typical confusion species.
@@nickmoran182 Thank You! :)
there is not a word out of place in this discription
I wish they had given more details about the hooded crows too instead of just a mere mention. Hooded crows and jackdaws are very numerous in my town. Ravens are a bit more rare, I sometimes see a couple of them in the countryside, they're the most beautiful and fascinating. They're monogamous and I love to see them flying very close in the sky as if they were dancing, plus their cry is more gentle and relaxing than it seems, certainly far less noisy and chaotic than hooded crows's calls.
I see the first four out the back , except the last one .(chough)
Brilliant
thanks
so
much