You don’t really have to be an ornithologist to know much about the ways of domestic birds. Parrots and mynahs are, of course, popular with many people, as they can talk and mimic human speech to a degree.
I must however confess that my favourite bird is the black crow, a bird found in many parts of our country. Crows are gregarious by nature and sociable too. I have learnt much just by observing the activities of these birds.
A dozen or so crows frequent the balcony of our first-floor flat in Chennai. One or two of them greet us quite early in the morning with their loud, rough cry, no doubt to draw attention to their presence and perhaps to be fed. It is usually my daughter who makes the first offerings to the crows each morning, which keeps them quiet for at least a couple of hours.
A little before lunchtime, several crows – they are the “regulars” – start descending on our balcony as if on cue. But to give them credit, they usually don’t make a racket with their cawing but wait patiently for us to finish our own meal. Once we are through, it’s time for the crows to have their “lunch”. This is when we actually see the birds’ “social networking” in action.
As the crows eagerly watch our balcony door open out (they have good eyesight and hearing) and food being placed for them atop a low wall, they start cawing loudly to summon other birds in the neighbourhood – and some more birds usually join them.
Here one sees a “pecking order” at work, because the crows don’t all pounce on the food at the same time, resulting in a scramble. One or two of the birds, perhaps the “elders”, have a go at the food first, watched by the others, who wait for a while for their turn. Each crow flies away from the scene after having had its fill.
Like humans, the crows too have their food preferences. Almost all of them relish sweets, fried food items and crisp snacks – like biscuits, chips and wafers. and even murukku and kara sev.
Their taste also runs to boiled rice laced with spicy sambhar, and some (not all) vegetable curries. We have no idea what non-veg items they like or dislike, as our family is wholly vegetarian!
