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Thanks so much for this! I grew up in Australia and always assumed the crows were responsible for my favourite sound of the English woods; now I know it's the rook! Looking forward to hearing them in real life one day ❤
I'm from the north of Ireland, which means thankfully I never have to worry about confusing rooks with carrion crows as we don't have carrion crows here. All our crows are hooded (we call them grey crows in Ireland and they're steeped in Irish mythology as a transformation of the morrigan).
This is a fantastic video to identify corvids. We were really unsure whether our regular garden visitors were carrion crows or ravens. It’s now absolutely clear that it’s a small family of carrion crows. They tend to know our routines and always show up at meal times for a taste of whatever’s cooking. 😂 They are very friendly ❤
Excellent and informative. Just what I needed ! An interesting thing about jays is that often you will find their small translucent blue feathers. I play golf and on our course in North West London we see lots of Jays particularly around Autumn. I often find the little blue feathers and have a small collection. Needless to say I regard them as lucky. I wonder if anyone else comes across their feathers ? When I meet crows on the course I say good morning to them by croaking in what I believed , before watching this video, was crow language. I do get a reaction they suddenly lift their heads and look around. Sometimes they fly away. I think my croak is similar to a raven's and perhaps it is threatening to them.
Great summary. I've sometime seen flocks of 20 or more choughs on the cliffs of Pembrokeshire - beautiful birds. Also had a pet rook as a teenager, that had fallen out of the nest & I took home. Hugely intelligent and very affectionate bird - used to follow my school bus 4 miles to school on occasion & land on my shoulder as I got off. Gradually returned to the wild after a few years, with fewer & fewer visits, hope he{?) had a good life.
Good vid. Honestly. ravens are a LOT bigger! Very nice. You should always great a magpie with: 'Good morning, Mr Magpie, how are the wife and kinds'. This is based on the likelihood that magpies mate for life and if you see one alone you express the hope that its partner is simply absent. We also salute ours and say 'Good morning, captain' and salute, presumably because of the navel markings. As for crows, they do gather in family and multipal family groups, at least round our way. You can see they are not rooks as the all have black beaks, whether adults or young. We have lots of regular visitors to our big garden and field and it is a priviledge to see them. Super smart - great to watch them work in teams (usually pairs) to see off buzzards. We had the joy of seeing a crow nursing its mate with a broken wing (simple wing breaks heal) in a local park, bringing food and keeping others at bay for a coupe of weeks, till it was well enough to fly off. See a fair few ravens nearby, but mostly hear them - best description I heard of their call is 'cronk', but it is almost like a pig's grunt. As an aside, an agricultural study found crows do as much good as harm to crops because of the insects and parasites they eat. I might mention in passing that rooks and crows can and do interbreed, but I cannnot recall if the offspring are fertile. Thanks a lot for this one.
Brilliant! I love corvids.. Even the smaller species seem to be so intelligent.. This most informative rundown is DEFINITELY one to keep for reference. Nice one Liam! 🌟👍
I got to join in with some raven training this spring. They're clever but can be quite stubborn and sneaky! You suddenly realise how big and powerful those beaks are when one is perching on your arm!
I love corvids too, I’m always looking for Ravens up here on the welsh Shropshire border! Is it, 😅isn’t it driving along the lanes , once saw two ravens in the winter flying low wing tip to wing tip, cruising, looking for food in the winter, thrilling!
Great video. The identification of these birds has been on my bucket list for decades. Alas I am a slow learner and will have to watch again and again.
These birds are obviously the most seen and intelligent. It would be nice to know more about their longevity and how that rates in UK over many decades ❤
I’ve had a pair of jackdaws living in my chimney for the last ten years and I haven’t got a problem with it. I can head them squabbling in the mornings and watch as they defend their home from other birds
I always get confused, trying to identify rooks and crows and often thought what their differences were. Great informative video. Although i would probably have to re watch a few times to help me fully clarify between the two.
Rooks slightly smaller and have no feathers around the base of their beak. Their beaks also tends to be lighter coloured and they’re a bit shaggier. Black Crow has a dark beak, feathered around the base. And they’re tidier looking.
Enjoyed the video ,well put together .l live in Eastbourne East Sussex . I have noticed a great increase in ravens in the last few years , which is great to see.
Really useful, I've long struggled to distinguish these birds from each other, but this video explains the differences perfectly, plus hearing their calls helps a lot too. Thanks!
❤ the Corvid family. I saw Chough’s for the 1st time over 20yrs ago on the RSPB reserve on The Mull of Oa in the Scottish island of Islay. The North Atlantic 🌊 is there. Not a big population & I’ve seen them at the Giants Causeway in Northern Ireland. So I’ve seen all the members of the Corvid family in 🇬🇧
I've also seen Choughs on the Scottish islands off the West Coast... can't remember which island it was as it was ages ago, but they are definitely there.
Good overview. I live in America and had never heard of some of these birds. The Chough, in particular, is really interesting looking with the red beak and legs.
If you ever go hiking or skiing in the European alps you might see the more common alpine chough. It’s identical to the coastal chough in size but with bright yellow beak & feet instead. I remember they used to beg for bread from skiers.
Another lovely informative video. Many thanks. I didn't know that you can see UK Ravens in the wild for some reason. I just knew they had some at The Tower Of London. I've recently moved to an area by the south coast where I see Oyster Catchers. Not sure if you've featured these yet, but they are great to watch. I wasn't aware of them until now. Thanks again!
I live in the Peak District and was able to identify a raven based on its tail shape a few months ago. The first time I've ever seen one in these parts, so they're definitely spreading!
I Love looking at birds but have no idea what the difference is. I thought a crow was a crow. I didn't see a magpie til I was 18 . I feed a group of 'crows' on Crickley Hill in Gloucester as they come and greet me whilst walking the dog. I have dozens of birds in my garden on the feeding tables I call them all sparrow's I know some are starlings because they fly in formation. Eyesight not good these days but still enjoy them.
I once observed a juvenile chough strangely flocking with seagulls in one of the most unlikely locations. Bellshill Industrial Estate in Scotland. My mates wife, a keen birdwatcher, was well peeved. She had been on a special "chough spotting" trip on the west coast of Scotland and hadn't seen a single chough.
There is a one-legged jackdaw that has been visiting the garden here for at least the last three years that I always keep a particular look out for. There's also a rook who has taken to hanging around a square in the local town and making what I thought were very un-rook-like chirping noises to beg for food. But then I saw a large flock of rooks flying at dusk, and there was a lot of chirping going on between members of the flock as the flew back to their rookery for the night. I definitely think that Corvids are the most interesting birds.
Jays are my favourite bird, have one visit my garden frequently and they are so beautiful to watch flying by. They only seem to hop around my garden rather than walk as though they think its too dangerous to walk, which is funny to see! I've seen a pair visit last summer and still hoping to see a juvenile with them, that would be awesome. Their call is so distinctive (and loud!) but they also mimic birds, and I heard them mimicing a cat once which was brilliant. I'd love to see more rooks, unfortunately they seem to hate south yorkshire as I only ever see any when I'm travelling elsewhere! I'd love to see a raven someday, didn't realise they preferred coastal areas so not suprising I haven't seen one where I live then!
I'm in the northwest of England and i mainly see black crows, magpies and jackdaws that visit my garden, but I've had jays visit occasionally, and I see rooks and ravens out and about sometimes. It's hard to tell sometimes if I'm seeing a raven or a really big crow, so this video is helpful! Every morning I put out leftover cat food for the magpie pair that visit me, but lately they're getting chased off by a big old crow, poor buggers 😅
Excellent video, Liam. I always continue to confuse crows and rooks. Am watching again and taking notes. I find the size and weights most useful in your videos. And the beautiful filming. Best wishes
Thanks Andrew, I am glad you found this video useful and interesting. Although some of the footage is mine, some of the footage I used in this video (and most of my other fact file type videos) is creative commons and not filmed by me. One day I would love to be able to film it all myself but with a normal 9-5 and youtube, I dont have enough time at the moment. Cheers!
Thank you for the information very useful we have loads of jackdaws about 20 large &younger 1sthey love cake I buy from Blackpool seller 3 for a pound plus many more birds enjoy feeding them nice way to relaxing with fresh coffee .John Rooney st Anne's Lancashire UK
Excellent tutorial! I love the fact that rooks are very fond of jackdaws, and vice versa! They will often forage, associate and even nest (not in the same exact nest) in the same tree! Two actually teamed up to relieve me of my sandwich one day! They didn't swoop like naughty seagulls but intelligently appealed to me and took a piece each from my hand. Note: I have NEVER known a corvid to take two offerings from the same hand of a stranger! NEVER! I believe they understand the risk of being captured second time around! If you see one caged, try this out! I'll bet they'll take the first peanut off you but you just try and get them to take a second one!
I live in Burry Port, 15 miles west of Swansea. I've never seen a Chough {or hooded crow} but have seen all the others. I used to feed a jackdaw that had a droopy wing for a few years. It hung around when it saw me entering or leaving my front door, whilst I went into my kitchen to get it a handful of cereal.
I've been walking along The Pembrokeshire Coast path over the last couple of years, and I've been fortunate enough to see 100s of Choughs during that time. Evidently thriving in this corner of Cymru. In Cymraeg/Welsh they're called Bran Goesgoch/Red Legged Crow.
I raised a Raven last summer. She chose to stay around and is never caged, clipped or tethered. Has become more independent lately. But still roosts on the porch every night. I posted some interactions on my channel if interested. Experience and Blessing of my lifetime!
A great overview of the most fascinating family of birds. The other way that helps distinguish between Rooks and Crows is if they're with Jackdaws they'll almost definitely be Rooks. The tail shape differs too, Rooks have a rounded end to their tail and Crows have a straight edge to theirs. Haven't seen a wild Chough before, at least not for sure. Could you do one of these on Warblers, I find them very difficult to tell apart ?
Thank you for this video. I really like corvids. They fascinate me. Where I live (Norfolk), carrion crows are all over the place, but, despite the claims in the bird books, never seen a Raven, and I know the difference. However, I used to do a lot of hillwalking in the Highlands and Ravens were common. I befriended one who followed me all he way Up Ben Cruachan. Yes he got a treat when I got to the summit cairn. Indeed he was walking around at my feet, So trusting.
All the Corvids of the U.K. are beautiful birds. I don’t recognise them all but I’m more familiar with their sounds then how each bird looks, apart from the Magpie, Crow and Raven. I have two Magpies nesting in my neighbours Conifer tree which overhangs over my garden fence. They are quite mischievous and many times I hear them causing a ruckus on my interlocking concrete roof tiles, rummaging for insects in between the moss. On the downside, they, alongside some wood pigeons I have nesting in my neighbours conifer tree leave a lot of bird droppings on my red roof tiles, which discolours them over time, as well as the moss building up. I love hearing the sounds of wood pigeons, magpies and crows in my garden, which is like meditation. Often I find the wood pigeons and magpies nesting in my back yard, patrolling across my grass, pecking at the grass every so often, looking for insects like earthworms and slugs. I wonder do they peck at the grass randomly, hoping they get lucky with a feed, or do they peck at the grass when they see insects crawling beneath them? Either way, whenever it’s dead quiet at night, or during the early hours of the morning, when I hear a random crow fly over my house suddenly, or swoop down towards my windows or doors and croak loudly, it triggers superstition in me, and I wonder is it a sign of good things or bad things to come.
Thanks so much for this video. We have hundreds nesting all year round in tall trees in land behind my house. Their noise early morning and evening is so loud. We neighbours often discussed which bird they are. Now we know. They are rooks in a huge rookery.
Hi Liam happy new year , brilliant video very interesting nice to know how to identify them all I did get mixed up with them keep up with your brilliant work and videos Bernard
You read my mind! Producing this vid as I needed it. I have enjoyed it too,I do enjoy our intelligent Corvids. The only birds better at maths than me! Possibly! Thank you
That was so informative Liam, for me it’s possibly your best post date 👍 Living down here in West Cornwall there’s always the chance we may, if lucky see Choughs. However this post is a real help in identifying for sure what else we have in the fields around us. Thank you 🙏
I’ve seen a few choughs nesting in old stone ruins on the west coast of Ireland. They behaved just like other corvids watching me from the wall tops as I was exploring the ruins!
Just about got the hang of the rook, crow and raven puzzle now, I think! Harder to ID in flight but always handy when ravens call, as very distinctive. They are quite common in my part of Dorset - can almost guarantee to hear and/or see one most days, and at Portland Bill they can always be found. Love the corvids, they are all such characters, so enjoyed this video a lot.
Thank you. I was tempted to include a comparison of their silhouettes but I think it would have made the video far too long unfortunately. How lucky are you! Raven are still very rare here in Norfolk but their numbers do seem to be slowly increasing. Happy new year!
@@AShotOfWildlife Silhouettes could be helpful but I think the footage and calls you put in the video were perfect for the job! Hopefully ravens will continue to increase in your area. I managed to photograph one today, being chased by a buzzard... which is unusual as normally the corvids go after the buzzards.... however, the raven had what looked like a dogfish in its bill, possibly from nearby Chesil beach, so guess he stole it from the buzzard, or the buzzard was trying to steal it from the raven. Only had 300mm lens but I got record shots at least. Happy new year to you, and look forward to more of your interesting videos! 👍🏻
Will you please stop posting interesting and well made videos! I have been stuck for the last hour, going from video to video and I have a lot to do you know. I can't be sitting here watch informative videos all day ; ) Thank you for that, mate
I’m sure I’m one of the people that asked for this video Liam. Thanks for delivering it with your usual excellence! I have seen Choughs on a walk on the cliffs at Southerndown (south of Bridgend.) no need for your viewers to go all the way to west Wales to see them. They are amazing fliers
Hi Charles. I think you are right, I hope the video was up to the job. Thanks for that extra bit of information, I think I used the rspb distribution maps but they can sometimes be a bit outdated/incorrect. Happy new year, expect lots of videos from me in 2023!
I've lived in this house since 2006 (Perthshire, Scotland), and saw the very first Rook in my garden a couple of days ago. He was determined to peck the last fat ball into a smaller piece that he could then fly off with.... which he did, eventually.
Ive seen them doing the same thing. In fact, I am not sure if I included it in this video or not but I did film one doing it as well. I suspect they carry the pieces off and hide them somewhere to eat later.
Great video Liam. Here in the Chilterns we get all the corvids (apart from Choughs and Hoodies, obviously). The biggest difficulty in telling them apart is often judging size. A Jackdaw in flight nearby can look as big as a Raven further away if there is no scale reference. We have a local carrion crow with a distinctive stiff wing that it can’t straighten and fold away properly. You might think it would be disadvantaged but it’s been around for at least six years and raised a brood of youngsters every year.
I know it’s a bit outside of your usual content, but when you mentioned the hybridisation of the hooded, and carrion crow, it made me think of ring species, like the Larus gulls (depending on who you ask). I know that when I first learned of ring species (in The Ancestor’s Tale, Richard Dawkins, I believe) I found it fascinating. Just a suggestion for a video idea, but your videos are great, and informative, so keep doing what you’re doing 👍🏻
Can remember seeing large flocks on the beach in Isle of man (douglas) when I was a teen around 1980 on holiday as we don't get them in the west of Scotland
Now? I know where the word "" Rookery"" came from! I'm claiming it! Lol! Do your Eurasian Jay's like peanuts? Our Blue Jays love them! Great diversity of Corvids. We have Magpies out west. I'm in the eastern part of the states. We have Ravens and Common Crows and fish Crows. The Carrion Crows remind me of our Common Crows. I've had two different times in my life when I had a crow for a pet. Eventually they flew off and would come to visit. Very good video as always! Try putting peanuts out for the Jays.
A few weeks back, I think during that cold snap early in December I witnessed a group of Corvids (Crows or Rooks) battling it out with a flock of gulls. The Corvids were feisty and noisy swooping low over the roofs and mobbing the gulls. Quite a sight.
Thank you for posting this, I have been trying to convince a friend that birds that are inhabitants of a quite large number of nests in a copse at the rear of his home are Rooks, and not Crows as he insists on calling them, sharing this video will enlighten him, and I might add has considerably added to my knowledge of this clever avian family.
My neighbour has no lid on their green wheelie bin. Every day i see huge black birds jumping into the bin and flinging rubbish out into the garden while rummaging for grub. The magpies stand around to scavange their castoffs. You should see the mess! Anyway, i now know they are definitely common ravens. They are pretty massive tbh. Im in the West of Scotland. Thanks for confirming 👍🏼
Thank you Liam. Do the Eurasian magpies swoop around breeding season? Here in Australia they are known for swooping especially our posties who deliver the mail on motorcycles. I love your channel it is so interesting and nostalgic for me as I originally came from England but have spent most of my life in Australia. ❤
This was a very clear video. Much needed for me. I live on the West of Canada,so naturally we don't get some of these birds out here, but we do get some. Thank you for your lovely clear videos.
Thank you again Liam for all this knowledge! I live in Hannover (GER), and I would love to learn more about the birds around here. After this video I will try to spot the local Corvidae species. Cheers mate!
Thank you very much for covering corvids. We have many magpies and jackdaws that visit the garden, such characters and often up to mischief. The last two years we have had jackdaws nesting in our chimney and those of our neighbours. They are quite noisy though not as bad as the herring gulls that they keep away during the nesting season. The loudest day is when the young fledge and it seems every jackdaw in the neighborhood comes to cheer them on. I see far less, and consequently struggle with, the identification of rooks and carrion crows. Thanks to your video I'm all set for the next time I see them. Thank you for including the chough. I remember the hard work put into their re-introduction when I was growing up. I look forward to watching your next video.
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Thank you for watching this video and taking a look at the comments!
If you would like to support me to make even more videos, please consider my Patreon which can be found here> www.patreon.com/ashotofwildlife
Cheers.
Corvids are the coolest ... they seem to have a proper attitude. They always make me smile.... which is good 😃
Love your calm narrative style.
Thank you!
Thanks so much for this! I grew up in Australia and always assumed the crows were responsible for my favourite sound of the English woods; now I know it's the rook! Looking forward to hearing them in real life one day ❤
Good luck, I hope you get to hear them in real life one day :)
I'm from the north of Ireland, which means thankfully I never have to worry about confusing rooks with carrion crows as we don't have carrion crows here. All our crows are hooded (we call them grey crows in Ireland and they're steeped in Irish mythology as a transformation of the morrigan).
Very mystical/powerful/spiritual birds 💯🤟
No. They literally ARE morrigans. What's a morrigan btw?
By north of Ireland do you mean Northern Ireland or one of the unwanted counties of ulster?
@@slippinggnome "Unwanted" due to large Protestant population?
Ps. He says where he is from.
Middle of Co Down here and there’s loads of carrion crows here. 🤔 Must have just an isolated local flock or summat…
I have the chrome extension that lets you see YT dislikes. This video has 5.2k likes, and 0, yes ZERO dislikes. What a guy! Great video! Subscribed!
Thank you and a belated welcome to the channel! Although I have since received 32 dislikes... cant please them all.
This is a fantastic video to identify corvids. We were really unsure whether our regular garden visitors were carrion crows or ravens. It’s now absolutely clear that it’s a small family of carrion crows. They tend to know our routines and always show up at meal times for a taste of whatever’s cooking. 😂 They are very friendly ❤
Excellent and informative. Just what I needed ! An interesting thing about jays is that often you will find their small translucent blue feathers. I play golf and on our course in North West London we see lots of Jays particularly around Autumn. I often find the little blue feathers and have a small collection. Needless to say I regard them as lucky. I wonder if anyone else comes across their feathers ?
When I meet crows on the course I say good morning to them by croaking in what I believed , before watching this video, was crow language. I do get a reaction they suddenly lift their heads and look around. Sometimes they fly away. I think my croak is similar to a raven's and perhaps it is threatening to them.
Brilliant video, as always. As of the last few months, a population of Choughs have been reintroduced to Kent (at Dover).
Oh wow, that's not toooo far from me, I might have to see if I can make a trip down there to look for them. Cheers
Great summary. I've sometime seen flocks of 20 or more choughs on the cliffs of Pembrokeshire - beautiful birds.
Also had a pet rook as a teenager, that had fallen out of the nest & I took home.
Hugely intelligent and very affectionate bird - used to follow my school bus 4 miles to school on occasion & land on my shoulder as I got off.
Gradually returned to the wild after a few years, with fewer & fewer visits, hope he{?) had a good life.
Good vid. Honestly. ravens are a LOT bigger! Very nice. You should always great a magpie with: 'Good morning, Mr Magpie, how are the wife and kinds'. This is based on the likelihood that magpies mate for life and if you see one alone you express the hope that its partner is simply absent. We also salute ours and say 'Good morning, captain' and salute, presumably because of the navel markings. As for crows, they do gather in family and multipal family groups, at least round our way. You can see they are not rooks as the all have black beaks, whether adults or young. We have lots of regular visitors to our big garden and field and it is a priviledge to see them. Super smart - great to watch them work in teams (usually pairs) to see off buzzards. We had the joy of seeing a crow nursing its mate with a broken wing (simple wing breaks heal) in a local park, bringing food and keeping others at bay for a coupe of weeks, till it was well enough to fly off. See a fair few ravens nearby, but mostly hear them - best description I heard of their call is 'cronk', but it is almost like a pig's grunt. As an aside, an agricultural study found crows do as much good as harm to crops because of the insects and parasites they eat. I might mention in passing that rooks and crows can and do interbreed, but I cannnot recall if the offspring are fertile. Thanks a lot for this one.
This is a spot on account of our corvids in the uk. Well done Liam
Thank you Pete! Appreciate your support.
@@AShotOfWildlife great video thank you
Brilliant! I love corvids.. Even the smaller species seem to be so intelligent.. This most informative rundown is DEFINITELY one to keep for reference. Nice one Liam! 🌟👍
Thanks William. I'm glad the video is informative and hope you find it useful. Cheers.
I do too. They fascinate me, and they are so clever.
I got to join in with some raven training this spring. They're clever but can be quite stubborn and sneaky! You suddenly realise how big and powerful those beaks are when one is perching on your arm!
I love corvids too, I’m always looking for Ravens up here on the welsh Shropshire border! Is it, 😅isn’t it driving along the lanes , once saw two ravens in the winter flying low wing tip to wing tip, cruising, looking for food in the winter, thrilling!
Great video. The identification of these birds has been on my bucket list for decades. Alas I am a slow learner and will have to watch again and again.
A wonderful coincidence. I was just complaining earlier that I had no idea about telling crows and ravens apart. Thank you!
These birds are obviously the most seen and intelligent. It would be nice to know more about their longevity and how that rates in UK over many decades ❤
I’ve had a pair of jackdaws living in my chimney for the last ten years and I haven’t got a problem with it. I can head them squabbling in the mornings and watch as they defend their home from other birds
Ohhhh very very interesting, good morning fantastic and beatifull thank 💯💢💯👍🤗🌟🌟👈
There was a huge battle of carrion crows against magpies in the tree outside my home today, the noise was blood curdling.
Love corvids. Just love them. 🥰 You can see them working stuff out.
I always get confused, trying to identify rooks and crows and often thought what their differences were. Great informative video. Although i would probably have to re watch a few times to help me fully clarify between the two.
It's easy; rooks have white/ivory coloured beaks, Crows don't.
I still cant seem to identify these birds. Everytime i try to measure them they fly away :(
My grandad used to say a rook on its own is a crow, and a crow in a crowd is a rook. By and large not far wrong 😃
Rooks slightly smaller and have no feathers around the base of their beak. Their beaks also tends to be lighter coloured and they’re a bit shaggier.
Black Crow has a dark beak, feathered around the base. And they’re tidier looking.
I've been waiting my whole life for this video, thank you!
You're welcome
Enjoyed the video ,well put together .l live in Eastbourne East Sussex . I have noticed a great increase in ravens in the last few years , which is great to see.
You're lucky, I've never seen one here (SE kent.) hopefully they will spread to my area.
There are a few around Dungeness, Dover and Ashford
Really useful, I've long struggled to distinguish these birds from each other, but this video explains the differences perfectly, plus hearing their calls helps a lot too. Thanks!
❤ the Corvid family. I saw Chough’s for the 1st time over 20yrs ago on the RSPB reserve on The Mull of Oa in the Scottish island of Islay. The North Atlantic 🌊 is there. Not a big population & I’ve seen them at the Giants Causeway in Northern Ireland. So I’ve seen all the members of the Corvid family in 🇬🇧
I've also seen Choughs on the Scottish islands off the West Coast... can't remember which island it was as it was ages ago, but they are definitely there.
The Birds
0:26 - Eurasian Gray
1:13 - Eurasian Magpie
1:59 - Jackdaw
2:49 - Hooded Crow
3:59 - Rook
4:51 - Carrion Crow
6:08 - Common Raven
7:24 - Chuff
0:21 The Eurasian Jay
and 7:24 Chough
The biggest Raven roast is in ‘West Wales’, you can hear them chattering in the night at roast telling each other where they can find lot’s of food.
This is invaluable, thanks so much. ❤
Thank you!
Definitely my favourite family of birds . They are amazing ❤
Good overview. I live in America and had never heard of some of these birds. The Chough, in particular, is really interesting looking with the red beak and legs.
If you ever go hiking or skiing in the European alps you might see the more common alpine chough. It’s identical to the coastal chough in size but with bright yellow beak & feet instead.
I remember they used to beg for bread from skiers.
Very interesting, I love the way you explain our lovely feathered friends, I love the Magpies and the cry of the Rooks. Many thanks for this🐦
Rooks do have very interesting vocalizations, If you're lucky enough to see a communal nesting site with lots of rooks; the calls are amazing.
just class. well done x
Thank you.
As an occasional traveler to the UK, this video was an outstanding primer.
Excellent as always, thank you.
Iam from Northern Ireland and I love watching birds
Enjoyed seeing the choughs on the great orme Llandudno this September, corvid heaven.
Another lovely informative video. Many thanks. I didn't know that you can see UK Ravens in the wild for some reason. I just knew they had some at The Tower Of London. I've recently moved to an area by the south coast where I see Oyster Catchers. Not sure if you've featured these yet, but they are great to watch. I wasn't aware of them until now. Thanks again!
I live in the Peak District and was able to identify a raven based on its tail shape a few months ago. The first time I've ever seen one in these parts, so they're definitely spreading!
I Love looking at birds but have no idea what the difference is.
I thought a crow was a crow.
I didn't see a magpie til I was 18 .
I feed a group of 'crows' on Crickley Hill in Gloucester as they come and greet me whilst walking the dog.
I have dozens of birds in my garden on the feeding tables I call them all sparrow's I know some are starlings because they fly in formation.
Eyesight not good these days but still enjoy them.
I once observed a juvenile chough strangely flocking with seagulls in one of the most unlikely locations. Bellshill Industrial Estate in Scotland. My mates wife, a keen birdwatcher, was well peeved. She had been on a special "chough spotting" trip on the west coast of Scotland and hadn't seen a single chough.
Always brings a smile to my face when you upload 🐦
Cheers. That's very kind and nice to hear.
There is a one-legged jackdaw that has been visiting the garden here for at least the last three years that I always keep a particular look out for. There's also a rook who has taken to hanging around a square in the local town and making what I thought were very un-rook-like chirping noises to beg for food. But then I saw a large flock of rooks flying at dusk, and there was a lot of chirping going on between members of the flock as the flew back to their rookery for the night. I definitely think that Corvids are the most interesting birds.
Jays are my favourite bird, have one visit my garden frequently and they are so beautiful to watch flying by. They only seem to hop around my garden rather than walk as though they think its too dangerous to walk, which is funny to see! I've seen a pair visit last summer and still hoping to see a juvenile with them, that would be awesome. Their call is so distinctive (and loud!) but they also mimic birds, and I heard them mimicing a cat once which was brilliant.
I'd love to see more rooks, unfortunately they seem to hate south yorkshire as I only ever see any when I'm travelling elsewhere!
I'd love to see a raven someday, didn't realise they preferred coastal areas so not suprising I haven't seen one where I live then!
Very interesting, thank you.
Thanks Nigel!
Very informative. So it's a family of rooks that've been dominating my bird table each morning!
I'm in the northwest of England and i mainly see black crows, magpies and jackdaws that visit my garden, but I've had jays visit occasionally, and I see rooks and ravens out and about sometimes. It's hard to tell sometimes if I'm seeing a raven or a really big crow, so this video is helpful!
Every morning I put out leftover cat food for the magpie pair that visit me, but lately they're getting chased off by a big old crow, poor buggers 😅
Excellent video, Liam. I always continue to confuse crows and rooks. Am watching again and taking notes. I find the size and weights most useful in your videos. And the beautiful filming. Best wishes
Thanks Andrew, I am glad you found this video useful and interesting. Although some of the footage is mine, some of the footage I used in this video (and most of my other fact file type videos) is creative commons and not filmed by me. One day I would love to be able to film it all myself but with a normal 9-5 and youtube, I dont have enough time at the moment. Cheers!
Thank you for the information very useful we have loads of jackdaws about 20 large &younger 1sthey love cake I buy from Blackpool seller 3 for a pound plus many more birds enjoy feeding them nice way to relaxing with fresh coffee .John Rooney st Anne's Lancashire UK
Very informative, thanks!
Brilliant and thank you 🙏
Excellent tutorial! I love the fact that rooks are very fond of jackdaws, and vice versa! They will often forage, associate and even nest (not in the same exact nest) in the same tree! Two actually teamed up to relieve me of my sandwich one day! They didn't swoop like naughty seagulls but intelligently appealed to me and took a piece each from my hand. Note: I have NEVER known a corvid to take two offerings from the same hand of a stranger! NEVER! I believe they understand the risk of being captured second time around! If you see one caged, try this out! I'll bet they'll take the first peanut off you but you just try and get them to take a second one!
Rooks rock. They are proper big when you see them in the wild. And beautiful too.
My favourite bird!
I live in Burry Port, 15 miles west of Swansea. I've never seen a Chough {or hooded crow} but have seen all the others. I used to feed a jackdaw that had a droopy wing for a few years. It hung around when it saw me entering or leaving my front door, whilst I went into my kitchen to get it a handful of cereal.
I've been walking along The Pembrokeshire Coast path over the last couple of years, and I've been fortunate enough to see 100s of Choughs during that time. Evidently thriving in this corner of Cymru. In Cymraeg/Welsh they're called Bran Goesgoch/Red Legged Crow.
Very interesting, I'm 64 and have wondered about this all my life... So I thank you whole heartedly. Well done sir! Well done..
Thanks Perry. I'm glad you found it useful!
I raised a Raven last summer. She chose to stay around and is never caged, clipped or tethered. Has become more independent lately. But still roosts on the porch every night. I posted some interactions on my channel if interested. Experience and Blessing of my lifetime!
A great overview of the most fascinating family of birds. The other way that helps distinguish between Rooks and Crows is if they're with Jackdaws they'll almost definitely be Rooks. The tail shape differs too, Rooks have a rounded end to their tail and Crows have a straight edge to theirs. Haven't seen a wild Chough before, at least not for sure. Could you do one of these on Warblers, I find them very difficult to tell apart ?
Watching this made my morning. I sat drinking my morning coffee with a big smile ear to ear ( such beautiful birds ) 😊 TY 🙏✌️
All corvids are fascinating 🙂
Thank you for this video. I really like corvids. They fascinate me. Where I live (Norfolk), carrion crows are all over the place, but, despite the claims in the bird books, never seen a Raven, and I know the difference. However, I used to do a lot of hillwalking in the Highlands and Ravens were common. I befriended one who followed me all he way Up Ben Cruachan. Yes he got a treat when I got to the summit cairn. Indeed he was walking around at my feet, So trusting.
All the Corvids of the U.K. are beautiful birds. I don’t recognise them all but I’m more familiar with their sounds then how each bird looks, apart from the Magpie, Crow and Raven. I have two Magpies nesting in my neighbours Conifer tree which overhangs over my garden fence. They are quite mischievous and many times I hear them causing a ruckus on my interlocking concrete roof tiles, rummaging for insects in between the moss. On the downside, they, alongside some wood pigeons I have nesting in my neighbours conifer tree leave a lot of bird droppings on my red roof tiles, which discolours them over time, as well as the moss building up. I love hearing the sounds of wood pigeons, magpies and crows in my garden, which is like meditation. Often I find the wood pigeons and magpies nesting in my back yard, patrolling across my grass, pecking at the grass every so often, looking for insects like earthworms and slugs. I wonder do they peck at the grass randomly, hoping they get lucky with a feed, or do they peck at the grass when they see insects crawling beneath them? Either way, whenever it’s dead quiet at night, or during the early hours of the morning, when I hear a random crow fly over my house suddenly, or swoop down towards my windows or doors and croak loudly, it triggers superstition in me, and I wonder is it a sign of good things or bad things to come.
Thanks for posting very interesting and informative.
Thanks Marcus. You are very welcome!
Thanks so much for this video. We have hundreds nesting all year round in tall trees in land behind my house. Their noise early morning and evening is so loud. We neighbours often discussed which bird they are. Now we know. They are rooks in a huge rookery.
Fascinating to hear about the chough, I'd never heard of this corvid, let alone seen one! 😲
Hi Liam happy new year , brilliant video very interesting nice to know how to identify them all I did get mixed up with them keep up with your brilliant work and videos Bernard
You read my mind! Producing this vid as I needed it. I have enjoyed it too,I do enjoy our intelligent Corvids. The only birds better at maths than me! Possibly! Thank you
Thank you for the video.
I am in the US and greatly appreciate your having translated the statistics into Inches and ounces.
Thank you. A lot of people here use those units as well, but most young people now know grams and centimetres.
That was so informative Liam, for me it’s possibly your best post date 👍
Living down here in West Cornwall there’s always the chance we may, if lucky see Choughs. However this post is a real help in identifying for sure what else we have in the fields around us. Thank you 🙏
I didn't even know Choughs existed! Amazing looking birds.
I’ve seen a few choughs nesting in old stone ruins on the west coast of Ireland. They behaved just like other corvids watching me from the wall tops as I was exploring the ruins!
Aw I love the Jay not seen any since I was a kid. Great video btw.
Thank you, I'm glad you enjoyed it!
Very clear, I have ravens and crows in my garden daily and now I can work out which one is which. Its the Jay I wan t to see now!
Just about got the hang of the rook, crow and raven puzzle now, I think! Harder to ID in flight but always handy when ravens call, as very distinctive. They are quite common in my part of Dorset - can almost guarantee to hear and/or see one most days, and at Portland Bill they can always be found. Love the corvids, they are all such characters, so enjoyed this video a lot.
Thank you. I was tempted to include a comparison of their silhouettes but I think it would have made the video far too long unfortunately. How lucky are you! Raven are still very rare here in Norfolk but their numbers do seem to be slowly increasing. Happy new year!
@@AShotOfWildlife Silhouettes could be helpful but I think the footage and calls you put in the video were perfect for the job!
Hopefully ravens will continue to increase in your area. I managed to photograph one today, being chased by a buzzard... which is unusual as normally the corvids go after the buzzards.... however, the raven had what looked like a dogfish in its bill, possibly from nearby Chesil beach, so guess he stole it from the buzzard, or the buzzard was trying to steal it from the raven. Only had 300mm lens but I got record shots at least. Happy new year to you, and look forward to more of your interesting videos! 👍🏻
Will you please stop posting interesting and well made videos!
I have been stuck for the last hour, going from video to video and I have a lot to do you know. I can't be sitting here watch informative videos all day ; )
Thank you for that, mate
wow he's so talented.. iv been practicing my raven call for a few years but yours is on perfect point
Brilliant video. I'm from the far south east coast of Ireland and happy to say our cliffs afull of chufs.
Very informative.Thanks. I'm a country boy and have learned something here.
Wonderful, I’ve been thinking about the birds living near me and from this video I can say I’ve definitely got a pair of ravens! That’s super cool!
Great video keep up the good work 👍
Well presented Liam 👍🏼
Thanks Brian!
I go and check out the Choughs when I visit the Isle of Man for the annual TT races.
I’m sure I’m one of the people that asked for this video Liam. Thanks for delivering it with your usual excellence!
I have seen Choughs on a walk on the cliffs at Southerndown (south of Bridgend.) no need for your viewers to go all the way to west Wales to see them. They are amazing fliers
Hi Charles. I think you are right, I hope the video was up to the job. Thanks for that extra bit of information, I think I used the rspb distribution maps but they can sometimes be a bit outdated/incorrect. Happy new year, expect lots of videos from me in 2023!
I've lived in this house since 2006 (Perthshire, Scotland), and saw the very first Rook in my garden a couple of days ago. He was determined to peck the last fat ball into a smaller piece that he could then fly off with.... which he did, eventually.
Ive seen them doing the same thing. In fact, I am not sure if I included it in this video or not but I did film one doing it as well. I suspect they carry the pieces off and hide them somewhere to eat later.
Great video Liam. Here in the Chilterns we get all the corvids (apart from Choughs and Hoodies, obviously). The biggest difficulty in telling them apart is often judging size. A Jackdaw in flight nearby can look as big as a Raven further away if there is no scale reference. We have a local carrion crow with a distinctive stiff wing that it can’t straighten and fold away properly. You might think it would be disadvantaged but it’s been around for at least six years and raised a brood of youngsters every year.
I know it’s a bit outside of your usual content, but when you mentioned the hybridisation of the hooded, and carrion crow, it made me think of ring species, like the Larus gulls (depending on who you ask).
I know that when I first learned of ring species (in The Ancestor’s Tale, Richard Dawkins, I believe) I found it fascinating.
Just a suggestion for a video idea, but your videos are great, and informative, so keep doing what you’re doing 👍🏻
Can remember seeing large flocks on the beach in Isle of man (douglas) when I was a teen around 1980 on holiday as we don't get them in the west of Scotland
Now? I know where the word "" Rookery"" came from! I'm claiming it! Lol! Do your Eurasian Jay's like peanuts? Our Blue Jays love them! Great diversity of Corvids. We have Magpies out west. I'm in the eastern part of the states. We have Ravens and Common Crows and fish Crows. The Carrion Crows remind me of our Common Crows. I've had two different times in my life when I had a crow for a pet. Eventually they flew off and would come to visit. Very good video as always! Try putting peanuts out for the Jays.
Nice and concise, well-structured beginner's guide. Thank you
I had quite a few ravens behind my previous house in south Wales. I now live in a nearby town which, translated, means valley of the crow.
Excellent Liam.
Thank you!
Excellent summary, really helped get the differences stuck in my old noddle! I just love choughs.
Cheers David, happy to help!
Cheers Liam! I saw a jackdaw a couple of weeks ago, hardly ever see 'em round my way
Thanks for this helpful and informative video, Liam.
☝️😎
Cheers Patrick!
A few weeks back, I think during that cold snap early in December I witnessed a group of Corvids (Crows or Rooks) battling it out with a flock of gulls. The Corvids were feisty and noisy swooping low over the roofs and mobbing the gulls. Quite a sight.
Utterly fascinating!
Thank you!
Thank you for posting this, I have been trying to convince a friend that birds that are inhabitants of a quite large number of nests in a copse at the rear of his home are Rooks, and not Crows as he insists on calling them, sharing this video will enlighten him, and I might add has considerably added to my knowledge of this clever avian family.
Thank you for another great video will be watching more than once so it sinks in Cant believe the minor differences in some of these birds
My neighbour has no lid on their green wheelie bin. Every day i see huge black birds jumping into the bin and flinging rubbish out into the garden while rummaging for grub. The magpies stand around to scavange their castoffs. You should see the mess! Anyway, i now know they are definitely common ravens. They are pretty massive tbh. Im in the West of Scotland. Thanks for confirming 👍🏼
Thank you Liam. Do the Eurasian magpies swoop around breeding season? Here in Australia they are known for swooping especially our posties who deliver the mail on motorcycles. I love your channel it is so interesting and nostalgic for me as I originally came from England but have spent most of my life in Australia. ❤
The Australian magpies aren’t actually corvids, which is interesting. The Eurasian magpies don’t swoop
@@stnldvs Thank you for replying
This was a very clear video. Much needed for me. I live on the West of Canada,so naturally we don't get some of these birds out here, but we do get some. Thank you for your lovely clear videos.
I have a small woodland behind my house. I see a lot of magpies but also Jays and crows
Thank you again Liam for all this knowledge! I live in Hannover (GER), and I would love to learn more about the birds around here. After this video I will try to spot the local Corvidae species. Cheers mate!
Thank you very much for covering corvids. We have many magpies and jackdaws that visit the garden, such characters and often up to mischief. The last two years we have had jackdaws nesting in our chimney and those of our neighbours. They are quite noisy though not as bad as the herring gulls that they keep away during the nesting season. The loudest day is when the young fledge and it seems every jackdaw in the neighborhood comes to cheer them on.
I see far less, and consequently struggle with, the identification of rooks and carrion crows. Thanks to your video I'm all set for the next time I see them. Thank you for including the chough. I remember the hard work put into their re-introduction when I was growing up. I look forward to watching your next video.