Product Description

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #226045 in Books
• Published on: 2005-10-31
• Original language: English
• Binding: Hardcover
• 408 pages

From Publishers Weekly
Historically feared, hunted and otherwise maligned, corvids (crows, ravens and the like) have finally found in the coauthors two champions of their cause. Professor Marzluff and artist and writer Angell, in their decades of observing crows and ravens (Angell's illustrations complement the text), have compiled an eye-popping catalogue of crow feats: Japanese carrion crows use moving cars as nutcrackers; Seattle crows, after being trapped by the authors, have learned to avoid them, even in the midst of thousands of UW-students; and, given the choice between french fries in a plain bag or a McDonald's bag, crows choose the branded bag every time. Marzluff and Angell entertain with these stories, but find less success with their arguments that no other animal has been as influential to human culture, and the two species have been for centuries involved in a "cultural coevolution." In essence, shifts in our culture cause crows to adapt, and in response, our culture responds, ad infinitum. They provide a litany of examples of crow influences on human culture (think Counting Crows, cave art and doctors dressed up as crows during the Black Death) and point to the similarities between human and crow cultures (particularly that of social learning) as evidence for the book's unofficial maxim: "to know the crow is to know ourselves." While the claims made here may over-reach, Marzluff and Angell passionately argue crows' importance, and along the way, provide ample evidence of corvid ingenuity.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist
Crows are one of the few birds that everyone can recognize. As ubiquitous members of the worldwide corvid family (which also includes the ravens, jays, magpies, and their kin), the more than 40 distinct species of crows have formed both practical and mythic relationships with their human neighbors. In this delightful blend of science, art, and anthropology, biologist Marzluff and illustrator Angell, both fascinated by the corvids, demonstrate why the crows and ravens are worthy of study and respect. Crows and ravens are adaptable, intelligent, and able to learn, remember, and use insight to solve problems. They use unique methods to obtain food, such as pulling up the lines of ice fishermen and rolling walnuts under car wheels. Humans have long noted these large, black, brainy birds, and their images have entered human culture (we "eat crow," open things with a "crowbar") and human mythology (the Norse god Odin was guided by two ravens). The text travels easily from science to folklore to literature, which, along with Angell's lively black-and-white illustrations, recommends this book highly. Nancy Bent
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Review
"This book is the first to produce a grand overview of the human-corvid complex and is truly something to crow about. With any luck In the Company of Crows and Ravens will stimulate more people to connect with nature by enjoying the antics of these easily observed birds." from the foreword by Paul Ehrlich, coauthor of Wild Solutions "Crows and ravens stir up much interest, precisely for the reasons John Marzluff and Tony Angell give in this handsomely illustrated work." Bernd Heinrich, author of Mind of the Raventrajectory"

Customer Reviews

Those noisy neighbours
They lack the colour glories of parrots and lorikeets. They're not like the little tweetie birds of our childhood books. Probably the best known of them is Poe's bleak image - perched atop a skull croaking its dismal litany. Long before Poe, however, the corvids had gained a shady reputation in Western European legends and myths. Crows and ravens were messengers of dark fortunes sent by agents of evil intent. As is so often the case with relying on literature to depict Nature, the legends misled us. The reality is far more interesting and explains more than fiction ever has. Marzluff and Angell, are dedicated scholars in the history and legends of the corvids. This book reflects well that background, and their combined skills present what they've gleaned with style and wit.

Perhaps no other species has shown how Darwinian adaptability can work as have crows, the authors suggest. Once wild and scattered, the crow has become habitated to human settlement. They were certainly scavengers at human feeding sites, whether people were hunters or scavengers themselves. Agriculture clearly brought them from the forests to the fields we planted. Grain crops - "the staff of life" - enticed them to our neighbourhoods quickly. The rise of cities only intensified the contact and offered the crow fresh opportunity. The "fast-food" restaurant, with its Dumpsters and scattered, food bearing trash, brings them hovering over what they clearly find a delicacy. They may even become selective, choosing the more brightly-coloured fries container over an equally laden drab one. It's even possible that the newly inhabited urban existence may be enhancing their numbers. The hunting activities in farmland is lacking in the city, but there are many nesting sites. We may complain about their noisy presence, but we brought them into our neighbourhood.

Nobody has ever questioned the intelligence of the Corvus genus. Crows, ravens, rooks and their relations are considered grand tricksters at best, and opportunist thieves at least. Their intelligence is stated by the authors as being the equivalent of "flying monkeys". Marzluff and Angell relate how crows in Japan took up residence near a driving school. They learned to drop nuts under the tires of stopped autos, returning to retrieve the meat after the wheel passed over and crushed the nut. The talent spread out over time and crows many kilometres away now practice the feat. Antics of this sort have been observed over the centuries, with our culture adopting Corvid elements into stories and descriptions. What are the wrinkles alongside the eyes of the elderly, but "crow's feet". We'll pass over the origins of "eating crow".

Corvid intellect goes beyond tricks and chance. The authors have witnessed both a murder of a crow by its fellows. They've also observed "funerals" in which a mob of crows silently surrounds a departed member [not the "murdered" one] for a long period, only to depart without a sound beyond the flutter of wings. Quiet crows are unusual. They also, it has been learned, developed the ability to count. Tests conducted with crows indicate they can count to five. They also "play". According to the authors, crows will slide down snowbanks or another smooth surface much as otters do, and with as little discernible purpose. Perhaps it's indicative that the Norse god Odin had two ravens, Thought and Memory as companions.

There's much more to be said about this book. As a resource, it's without peer, covering all aspects of Corvid life from mating rituals to nesting practices and territorial claims. As a narrative of observations, it reads much as an adventure story. You needn't be a fan of crows or ravens to enjoy this book. Angell's artwork greatly enhances the text, and is both informative and a treat in itself. The Corvids are your close neighbours and it's both pleasurable and profitable to read about who and what they are. [stephen a. haines - Ottawa, Canada]