Hooded Crow
Encyclopedia
The Hooded Crow (sometimes called Hoodiecrow) is a Eurasia
n bird species in the crow
genus
. Widely distributed, it is also known locally as Scotch Crow, Danish Crow, and Corbie or Grey Crow in Ireland
, which is what its Welsh name, Brân Lwyd, translates as. Found across Northern
, Eastern
and Southeastern Europe, as well as parts of the Middle East
, it is an ashy grey bird with black head, throat, wings, tail and thigh feathers, as well as a black bill, eyes and feet. Like other corvids it is an omnivorous and opportunistic forager and feeder.
It is so similar in morphology and habits to the Carrion Crow
(Corvus corone) that for many years they were considered by most authorities to be merely geographical races of one species. The fact that hybridization was observed where their ranges overlapped added weight to this view. However, since 2002, the Hooded Crow has been elevated to full species status after closer observation; the hybridisation was less than expected and hybrids had decreased vigour. Within the Hooded Crow species, four subspecies are recognized, with one, the Mesopotamian Crow
, possibly distinct enough to warrant species status itself.
in his 18th-century work Systema Naturae
and it once again bears its original name of Corvus cornix. The binomial name is derived from the Latin
words Corvus, "Raven", and cornix, "crow". It was subsequently considered a subspecies
of the Carrion Crow for many years, and hence known as Corvus corone cornix, due to similarities in structure and habits. Since 2002, it has been re-elevated to full species status.
It is locally known as a Hoodie in Northern Ireland
.
ern C. c. pallescens.
The Hooded Crow, with its contrasted greys and blacks, cannot be confused with either the Carrion Crow or Rook
, but the call notes of the two are almost indistinguishable.
The Hooded Crow breeds in northern and eastern Europe
, and closely allied forms inhabit southern Europe and western Asia
. Where its range overlaps with Carrion Crow, as in northern Britain
, Germany
, Denmark
, northern Italy
and Siberia
, their hybrids are fertile. However, the hybrids are less well-adapted than pure-bred birds, and this is one of the reasons that this species was split from the Carrion Crow. There are some areas, such as Iran and central Russia, where little or no interbreeding occurs.
In the British Isles
, the Hooded Crow breeds regularly in Scotland
, the Isle of Man
, and in the Scottish Islands. It also breeds widely in Ireland. In autumn some migratory
bird
s arrive on the east coast of Britain
. In the past, this was a more common visitor, and in Hertfordshire
was known as the Royston Crow after the town of Royston
. The 150-year old local newspaper is still titled Royston Crow
, and depicts the bird’s head on its masthead.
The Hooded Crow is omnivorous, with a diet similar to that of the Carrion Crow, and is a constant scavenger. It drops molluscs and crab
s to break them after the manner of the Carrion Crow, and an old Scottish
name for empty sea urchin
shells was "crow's cups". On coastal cliffs the eggs of gull
s, cormorant
s and other birds are stolen when their owners are absent, and it will enter the burrow of the Puffin
to steal eggs. It will also feed on small mammals, scraps, smaller birds and carrion.
, Shetland
and the Faroe Islands
, and late February in the Persian Gulf
region. In warmer parts of the British Isles, the clutch is laid in April. The bulky stick nest is normally placed in a tall tree, but cliff ledges, old buildings and pylons may be used. Nests are occasionally placed on or near the ground. The nest resembles that of the Carrion Crow, but on the coast seaweed is often interwoven in the structure, and animal bones and wire are also frequently incorporated. The four to six brown-speckled blue eggs are 4.3 x 3.0 centimetres (1.7 x 1.2 in) in size and weigh 19.8 grammes (0.71 oz), of which 6% is shell. The altricial
young are incubated for 17–19 days by the female alone, who is fed by the male. They fledge after 32 to 36 days. Incubating females have been reported to obtain most of their own food and later that for their young.
The typical lifespan is unknown, but that of the Carrion Crow is four years. The maximum recorded age for a Hooded Crow is 16 years 9 months.
This species is a secondary host of the parasitic
Great Spotted Cuckoo
, the European Magpie
being the preferred host. However, in areas where the latter species is absent, such as Israel
and Egypt
, the Hooded Crow becomes the normal corvid host.
This species, like its relative, is seen regularly killed by farmers and on grouse estates. In County Cork
, Ireland
the county's gun clubs shot 23,000 Hooded Crows in two years in the early 1980s.
does not distinguish the Hooded Crow from the Carrion Crow, but the two species together have an extensive range, estimated at 10 million square kilometres (3.8 million square miles), and a large population, including an estimated 14 to 34 million individuals in Europe alone. They are not believed to approach the thresholds for the population decline criterion of the IUCN Red List (i.e., declining more than 30% in ten years or three generations), and are therefore evaluated as Least Concern
. The Carrion Crow/Hooded Crow hybrid zone is slowly spreading northwest, but the Hooded Crow has of the order of three million territories in just Europe (excluding Russia).
, and could also be a manifestation of the Morrígan
, the wife of Tethra
, or the Cailleach
. This idea has persisted, and the Hooded Crow is associated with fairies in the Scottish highlands and Ireland; in the 18th century, Scottish shepherds would make offerings to them to keep them from attacking sheep. In Faroese
folklore, a maiden would go out on Candlemas morn and throw a stone, then a bone, then a clump of turf at a Hooded Crow – if it flew over the sea, her husband would be a foreigner; if it landed on a farm or house, she would marry a man from there; but if it stayed put, she would remain unmarried.
The Hooded Crow is featured on the crest of the North Hertfordshire District Council. it is also one of the 37 Norwegian birds depicted in the Bird Room of the Royal Palace
in Oslo
. Jethro Tull
mentions the Hooded Crow on the song "Jack Frost and the Hooded Crow" as a bonus track on the digitally remastered version of Broadsword and the Beast
and on their The Christmas Album.
Eurasia
Eurasia is a continent or supercontinent comprising the traditional continents of Europe and Asia ; covering about 52,990,000 km2 or about 10.6% of the Earth's surface located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres...
n bird species in the crow
Crow
Crows form the genus Corvus in the family Corvidae. Ranging in size from the relatively small pigeon-size jackdaws to the Common Raven of the Holarctic region and Thick-billed Raven of the highlands of Ethiopia, the 40 or so members of this genus occur on all temperate continents and several...
genus
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
. Widely distributed, it is also known locally as Scotch Crow, Danish Crow, and Corbie or Grey Crow in Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
, which is what its Welsh name, Brân Lwyd, translates as. Found across Northern
Northern Europe
Northern Europe is the northern part or region of Europe. Northern Europe typically refers to the seven countries in the northern part of the European subcontinent which includes Denmark, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, Finland and Sweden...
, Eastern
Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe is the eastern part of Europe. The term has widely disparate geopolitical, geographical, cultural and socioeconomic readings, which makes it highly context-dependent and even volatile, and there are "almost as many definitions of Eastern Europe as there are scholars of the region"...
and Southeastern Europe, as well as parts of the Middle East
Middle East
The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...
, it is an ashy grey bird with black head, throat, wings, tail and thigh feathers, as well as a black bill, eyes and feet. Like other corvids it is an omnivorous and opportunistic forager and feeder.
It is so similar in morphology and habits to the Carrion Crow
Carrion Crow
The Carrion Crow is a member of the passerine order of birds and the crow family which is native to western Europe and eastern Asia.-Taxonomy:...
(Corvus corone) that for many years they were considered by most authorities to be merely geographical races of one species. The fact that hybridization was observed where their ranges overlapped added weight to this view. However, since 2002, the Hooded Crow has been elevated to full species status after closer observation; the hybridisation was less than expected and hybrids had decreased vigour. Within the Hooded Crow species, four subspecies are recognized, with one, the Mesopotamian Crow
Mesopotamian Crow
The Mesopotamian Crow , also known as the Iraq Pied Crow, is a bird species of the crow genus. The crow is native to the region of Mesopotamia, in southern Iraq and southwest Iran, between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers....
, possibly distinct enough to warrant species status itself.
Taxonomy
The Hooded Crow was one of the many species originally described by LinnaeusCarolus Linnaeus
Carl Linnaeus , also known after his ennoblement as , was a Swedish botanist, physician, and zoologist, who laid the foundations for the modern scheme of binomial nomenclature. He is known as the father of modern taxonomy, and is also considered one of the fathers of modern ecology...
in his 18th-century work Systema Naturae
Systema Naturae
The book was one of the major works of the Swedish botanist, zoologist and physician Carolus Linnaeus. The first edition was published in 1735...
and it once again bears its original name of Corvus cornix. The binomial name is derived from the Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
words Corvus, "Raven", and cornix, "crow". It was subsequently considered a subspecies
Subspecies
Subspecies in biological classification, is either a taxonomic rank subordinate to species, ora taxonomic unit in that rank . A subspecies cannot be recognized in isolation: a species will either be recognized as having no subspecies at all or two or more, never just one...
of the Carrion Crow for many years, and hence known as Corvus corone cornix, due to similarities in structure and habits. Since 2002, it has been re-elevated to full species status.
It is locally known as a Hoodie in Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
.
Subspecies
Four subspecies of the Hooded Crow are now recognised; previously all were considered subspecies of Corvus corone. A fifth, Corvus cornix sardonius (Trischitta, 1939) has been listed though it has been alternately partitioned between C. c. sharpii (most populations), C. c. cornix (Corsican population) and the Middle EastMiddle East
The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...
ern C. c. pallescens.
- C. c. cornix, the nominate race, occurs in the British Isles (principally Scotland) and Europe, south to CorsicaCorsicaCorsica is an island in the Mediterranean Sea. It is located west of Italy, southeast of the French mainland, and north of the island of Sardinia....
. - C. c. pallescens (Madarász, 1904) is found in TurkeyTurkeyTurkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
and EgyptEgyptEgypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
, and is a paler form as its name suggests. - C. c. sharpii (Oates, 1889) is named for EnglishEnglandEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
zoologistZoologyZoology |zoölogy]]), is the branch of biology that relates to the animal kingdom, including the structure, embryology, evolution, classification, habits, and distribution of all animals, both living and extinct...
Richard Bowdler SharpeRichard Bowdler SharpeRichard Bowdler Sharpe was an English zoologist.-Biography:Sharpe was born in London and studied at Brighton College, The King's School, Peterborough and Loughborough Grammar School. At the age of sixteen he went to work for Smith & Sons in London...
. This is a paler grey form found from western SiberiaSiberiaSiberia is an extensive region constituting almost all of Northern Asia. Comprising the central and eastern portion of the Russian Federation, it was part of the Soviet Union from its beginning, as its predecessor states, the Tsardom of Russia and the Russian Empire, conquered it during the 16th...
through to the CaucasusCaucasusThe Caucasus, also Caucas or Caucasia , is a geopolitical region at the border of Europe and Asia, and situated between the Black and the Caspian sea...
region and IranIranIran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
. - C. c. capellanus (P.L. Sclater, 1877) is known as the Mesopotamian CrowMesopotamian CrowThe Mesopotamian Crow , also known as the Iraq Pied Crow, is a bird species of the crow genus. The crow is native to the region of Mesopotamia, in southern Iraq and southwest Iran, between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers....
or Iraqi Pied Crow. This distinctive form occurs in IraqIraqIraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
and southwestern IranIranIran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
. It has very pale grey plumage which looks almost white from a distance. It is possibly distinct enough to be considered a separate species.
Description
Except for the head, throat, wings, tail and thigh feathers, which are black and mostly glossy, the plumage is ash-grey, the dark shafts giving it a streaky appearance. The bill and legs are black; the iris dark brown. There is only one moult, in autumn, as in other crow species. The male is the larger bird, otherwise the sexes are alike. The flight is slow and heavy and usually straight. The length varies from 48 to 52 cm (19 to 20 in). When first hatched the young are much blacker than the parents. Juveniles have duller plumage with bluish or greyish eyes and initially a red mouth. Wingspan is 98 cm (39 in) and weight is on average 510 grammes.The Hooded Crow, with its contrasted greys and blacks, cannot be confused with either the Carrion Crow or Rook
Rook (bird)
The Rook is a member of the Corvidae family in the passerine order of birds. Named by Carl Linnaeus in 1758, the species name frugilegus is Latin for "food-gathering"....
, but the call notes of the two are almost indistinguishable.
Distribution and habitat
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, and closely allied forms inhabit southern Europe and western Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
. Where its range overlaps with Carrion Crow, as in northern Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
, northern Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
and Siberia
Siberia
Siberia is an extensive region constituting almost all of Northern Asia. Comprising the central and eastern portion of the Russian Federation, it was part of the Soviet Union from its beginning, as its predecessor states, the Tsardom of Russia and the Russian Empire, conquered it during the 16th...
, their hybrids are fertile. However, the hybrids are less well-adapted than pure-bred birds, and this is one of the reasons that this species was split from the Carrion Crow. There are some areas, such as Iran and central Russia, where little or no interbreeding occurs.
In the British Isles
British Isles
The British Isles are a group of islands off the northwest coast of continental Europe that include the islands of Great Britain and Ireland and over six thousand smaller isles. There are two sovereign states located on the islands: the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and...
, the Hooded Crow breeds regularly in Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
, the Isle of Man
Isle of Man
The Isle of Man , otherwise known simply as Mann , is a self-governing British Crown Dependency, located in the Irish Sea between the islands of Great Britain and Ireland, within the British Isles. The head of state is Queen Elizabeth II, who holds the title of Lord of Mann. The Lord of Mann is...
, and in the Scottish Islands. It also breeds widely in Ireland. In autumn some migratory
Bird migration
Bird migration is the regular seasonal journey undertaken by many species of birds. Bird movements include those made in response to changes in food availability, habitat or weather. Sometimes, journeys are not termed "true migration" because they are irregular or in only one direction...
bird
Bird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...
s arrive on the east coast of Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
. In the past, this was a more common visitor, and in Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England. The county town is Hertford.The county is one of the Home Counties and lies inland, bordered by Greater London , Buckinghamshire , Bedfordshire , Cambridgeshire and...
was known as the Royston Crow after the town of Royston
Royston, Hertfordshire
Royston is a town and civil parish in the District of North Hertfordshire and county of Hertfordshire in England.It is situated on the Greenwich Meridian, which brushes the towns western boundary, and at the northernmost apex of the county on the same latitude of towns such as Milton Keynes and...
. The 150-year old local newspaper is still titled Royston Crow
Royston Crow (newspaper)
The Royston Crow is a newspaper published in Royston, Hertfordshire, England. It was founded by John Warren in 1855. The newspaper is now a weekly publication, part of the Archant group. The newspaper's name is eponymous with the common name of the bird Corvus cornix, whose more frequently used...
, and depicts the bird’s head on its masthead.
Diet
Crab
True crabs are decapod crustaceans of the infraorder Brachyura, which typically have a very short projecting "tail" , or where the reduced abdomen is entirely hidden under the thorax...
s to break them after the manner of the Carrion Crow, and an old Scottish
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
name for empty sea urchin
Sea urchin
Sea urchins or urchins are small, spiny, globular animals which, with their close kin, such as sand dollars, constitute the class Echinoidea of the echinoderm phylum. They inhabit all oceans. Their shell, or "test", is round and spiny, typically from across. Common colors include black and dull...
shells was "crow's cups". On coastal cliffs the eggs of gull
Gull
Gulls are birds in the family Laridae. They are most closely related to the terns and only distantly related to auks, skimmers, and more distantly to the waders...
s, cormorant
Great Cormorant
The Great Cormorant , known as the Great Black Cormorant across the Northern Hemisphere, the Black Cormorant in Australia and the Black Shag further south in New Zealand, is a widespread member of the cormorant family of seabirds...
s and other birds are stolen when their owners are absent, and it will enter the burrow of the Puffin
Atlantic Puffin
The Atlantic Puffin is a seabird species in the auk family. It is a pelagic bird that feeds primarily by diving for fish, but also eats other sea creatures, such as squid and crustaceans. Its most obvious characteristic during the breeding season is its brightly coloured bill...
to steal eggs. It will also feed on small mammals, scraps, smaller birds and carrion.
Nesting
Nesting occurs later in colder regions: mid-May to mid-June in northwest RussiaRussia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
, Shetland
Shetland Islands
Shetland is a subarctic archipelago of Scotland that lies north and east of mainland Great Britain. The islands lie some to the northeast of Orkney and southeast of the Faroe Islands and form part of the division between the Atlantic Ocean to the west and the North Sea to the east. The total...
and the Faroe Islands
Faroe Islands
The Faroe Islands are an island group situated between the Norwegian Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, approximately halfway between Scotland and Iceland. The Faroe Islands are a self-governing territory within the Kingdom of Denmark, along with Denmark proper and Greenland...
, and late February in the Persian Gulf
Persian Gulf
The Persian Gulf, in Southwest Asia, is an extension of the Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.The Persian Gulf was the focus of the 1980–1988 Iran-Iraq War, in which each side attacked the other's oil tankers...
region. In warmer parts of the British Isles, the clutch is laid in April. The bulky stick nest is normally placed in a tall tree, but cliff ledges, old buildings and pylons may be used. Nests are occasionally placed on or near the ground. The nest resembles that of the Carrion Crow, but on the coast seaweed is often interwoven in the structure, and animal bones and wire are also frequently incorporated. The four to six brown-speckled blue eggs are 4.3 x 3.0 centimetres (1.7 x 1.2 in) in size and weigh 19.8 grammes (0.71 oz), of which 6% is shell. The altricial
Altricial
Altricial, meaning "requiring nourishment", refers to a pattern of growth and development in organisms which are incapable of moving around on their own soon after hatching or being born...
young are incubated for 17–19 days by the female alone, who is fed by the male. They fledge after 32 to 36 days. Incubating females have been reported to obtain most of their own food and later that for their young.
The typical lifespan is unknown, but that of the Carrion Crow is four years. The maximum recorded age for a Hooded Crow is 16 years 9 months.
This species is a secondary host of the parasitic
Brood parasite
Brood parasites are organisms that use the strategy of brood parasitism, a kind of kleptoparasitism found among birds, fish or insects, involving the manipulation and use of host individuals either of the same or different species to raise the young of the brood-parasite...
Great Spotted Cuckoo
Great Spotted Cuckoo
The Great Spotted Cuckoo is a member of the cuckoo order of birds, the Cuculiformes, which also includes the roadrunners, the anis and the coucals....
, the European Magpie
European Magpie
The European Magpie, Eurasian Magpie, or Common Magpie, , is a resident breeding bird throughout Europe, much of Asia and northwest Africa. It is one of several birds in the crow family named as magpies, and belongs to the Holarctic radiation of "monochrome" magpies...
being the preferred host. However, in areas where the latter species is absent, such as Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
and Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
, the Hooded Crow becomes the normal corvid host.
This species, like its relative, is seen regularly killed by farmers and on grouse estates. In County Cork
County Cork
County Cork is a county in Ireland. It is located in the South-West Region and is also part of the province of Munster. It is named after the city of Cork . Cork County Council is the local authority for the county...
, Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
the county's gun clubs shot 23,000 Hooded Crows in two years in the early 1980s.
Status
The IUCN Red ListIUCN Red List
The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species , founded in 1963, is the world's most comprehensive inventory of the global conservation status of biological species. The International Union for Conservation of Nature is the world's main authority on the conservation status of species...
does not distinguish the Hooded Crow from the Carrion Crow, but the two species together have an extensive range, estimated at 10 million square kilometres (3.8 million square miles), and a large population, including an estimated 14 to 34 million individuals in Europe alone. They are not believed to approach the thresholds for the population decline criterion of the IUCN Red List (i.e., declining more than 30% in ten years or three generations), and are therefore evaluated as Least Concern
Least Concern
Least Concern is an IUCN category assigned to extant taxon or lower taxa which have been evaluated but do not qualify for any other category. As such they do not qualify as threatened, Near Threatened, or Conservation Dependent...
. The Carrion Crow/Hooded Crow hybrid zone is slowly spreading northwest, but the Hooded Crow has of the order of three million territories in just Europe (excluding Russia).
Cultural significance
In Celtic folklore, the bird appears on the shoulder of the dying Cú ChulainnCú Chulainn
Cú Chulainn or Cúchulainn , and sometimes known in English as Cuhullin , is an Irish mythological hero who appears in the stories of the Ulster Cycle, as well as in Scottish and Manx folklore...
, and could also be a manifestation of the Morrígan
Morrígan
The Morrígan or Mórrígan , also written as Morrígu or in the plural as Morrígna, and spelt Morríghan or Mór-Ríoghain in Modern Irish, is a figure from Irish mythology who appears to have once been a goddess, although she is not explicitly referred to as such in the texts.The Morrigan is a goddess...
, the wife of Tethra
Tethra
In Irish mythology, Tethra of the Fomorians ruled Mag Mell after dying in the Second Battle of Mag Tuiredh.-Etymology:Tethra may be derived from the Proto-Indo-European *tetro- meaning 'quacking sound'....
, or the Cailleach
Cailleach
In Irish and Scottish mythology, the , also known as the Cailleach Bheur, is a divine hag, a creatrix, and possibly an ancestral deity or deified ancestor...
. This idea has persisted, and the Hooded Crow is associated with fairies in the Scottish highlands and Ireland; in the 18th century, Scottish shepherds would make offerings to them to keep them from attacking sheep. In Faroese
Faroe Islands
The Faroe Islands are an island group situated between the Norwegian Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, approximately halfway between Scotland and Iceland. The Faroe Islands are a self-governing territory within the Kingdom of Denmark, along with Denmark proper and Greenland...
folklore, a maiden would go out on Candlemas morn and throw a stone, then a bone, then a clump of turf at a Hooded Crow – if it flew over the sea, her husband would be a foreigner; if it landed on a farm or house, she would marry a man from there; but if it stayed put, she would remain unmarried.
The Hooded Crow is featured on the crest of the North Hertfordshire District Council. it is also one of the 37 Norwegian birds depicted in the Bird Room of the Royal Palace
Royal Palace, Oslo
The Royal Palace in Oslo was built in the first half of the 19th century as the Norwegian residence of Norwegian and Swedish king Charles III and is the official residence of the present Norwegian Monarch. The crown prince couple resides at Skaugum in Asker west of Oslo...
in Oslo
Oslo
Oslo is a municipality, as well as the capital and most populous city in Norway. As a municipality , it was established on 1 January 1838. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the city was largely destroyed by fire in 1624. The city was moved under the reign of Denmark–Norway's King...
. Jethro Tull
Jethro Tull (band)
Jethro Tull are a British rock group formed in 1967. Their music is characterised by the vocals, acoustic guitar, and flute playing of Ian Anderson, who has led the band since its founding, and the guitar work of Martin Barre, who has been with the band since 1969.Initially playing blues rock with...
mentions the Hooded Crow on the song "Jack Frost and the Hooded Crow" as a bonus track on the digitally remastered version of Broadsword and the Beast
Broadsword and the Beast
The Broadsword and The Beast is the 14th studio album by Jethro Tull, released on April 10, 1982 and according to Ian Anderson in the liner notes of the remastered CD, contains some of Jethro Tull's best music...
and on their The Christmas Album.
