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Country diary: Birds of a feather in a noisy argument
Queen's University, Belfast: The corvids in the branches above me spring a surprise – there's a black crow among them
TL;DR
- A confrontation between crows in a sycamore tree revealed a black crow among the typical grey hooded crows.
- The hooded crow, with its grey body and black extremities, is common in Ireland and parts of Scotland.
- The all-black carrion crow is more common in the rest of Britain, with some presence on the east coast of Northern Ireland.
- Hooded and carrion crows can interbreed, but have been designated as separate species since 1758.
- Genetic studies show a very small genetic difference between the two species, but visual cues for mating keep their populations distinct.