Throughout the history of human civilization, crows, ravens and their close cousins have been maligned. After all, these noisy, aggressive, intelligent, sinister-looking birds are known to raid crop fields and gardens, feast on carrion and kill the nestlings of beloved songbirds.
It is in winter that we most often encounter these truculent omnivores. While smaller and less hardy species cluster in thickets or cedar groves to escape the biting wind, crows meander about the countryside, announcing their presence with raucous calls and scouring their territory for unwanted hawks and owls.
As a naturalist, I must defend them; despite their traits, crows are vital members of nature's web of life. Indeed, if annoying behavior disqualified membership, we humans would never have evolved.
