Crows and musings on human nature

Cronus is the brightest crow I know. I am arriving at his territory and he is already waiting for me - I am pretty sure the guys from the park let him know somehow! He always seems to know when I am about to walk through those trees. I may not see him straight away but he always knows where I am and he always finds a way to make himself known: sometimes he flies millimetres over my head; other times he soars past me, wings wide open; and other times he just jumps from branch to branch until he is close enough - but not too close, just above my head. 

Cronus near his territory, after hiding the special treats I brought him
(04/04/2021)

We have a close relationship, he has a special call for me, and I have a special call for him. We understand each other, and he is one of the reasons why I have to go for my walks twice a day, I couldn't bear to disappoint him as I have been a constant in his day for so long, rain or shine, that I feel I am letting him down if I don't show up. He brightens my day and gives me a purpose. Silly, I know, he is just a wild animal. Many people would find this type of sacrifice ridiculous, but I find these small actions of kindness make a difference to Cronus and Rhea as well as their brood. And if it doesn't, at least it serves the purpose of teaching my kids the need for empathy and respect towards our animals and our environment.

Cronus waiting for me at the top of this cypress, where he can also see Rhea and his nest
(22/04/2021)

We humans have already made so much damage to this world - and still do to date. We are a despicable species that has spread everywhere (invasive), take over everything (destructive) and give absolutely nothing back. We show very little respect for our ecosystem (even though we need it to survive!), still believe animals are inferior to us, eject them from their habitats, persecute and kill their families, often see them as a nuisance if they dare to disrupt our ways of life. How many times did I hear things like 'too noisy', 'too dirty', 'they eat everything', 'I don't like them at all', 'how can I prevent them from coming to my feeders?' - I have heard it all, and to me, selective speciesism is the worst. We can still self-justify cruelty under the remit of good intentions and kindness. It's just wrong.

He lives near this strip of woodland that is wonderful to bury any treasures
(04/04/2021)

A great example of human's evil nature happened just last weekend in Wales, when some crazy idiot decided to use a chainsaw to cut down the platform where the nest of a pair of Ospreys was. The pair had just laid an egg the previous day. Who even does that!?  But there are so many other stories of human cruelty, some of them perpetrated on behalf of conservation: grey squirrels for starters. 

Even crows like Cronus are not exempt of persecution these days, as they can be killed under certain conditions that form part of a licence issued by the UK government. This 'license' is not really something someone formally applies for, there is virtually no control over the appropriate use of said license. Anyone with the intention to kill a crow (or corvids for that matter) will be able to do so and go unpunished as a result. This infuriates me as much as the people that use rat poison in the hope that doing so will completely eradicate rats from their gardens (it won't, but it will kill the owls, the foxes, the kites and all the other wild animals that feast on rats - including cats. And guess what, those animals are the ones that CAN make a difference in rat numbers).

{SIGH}

No wonder we are in such a pickle.