American Crow

Noticed this wild American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos) at the Calgary Zoo a couple of weeks ago, while the trees still had their autumn leaves. I so rarely get a photo of these birds.

"The American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos) is a large passerine bird species of the family Corvidae. It is a common bird found throughout much of North America. In the interior of the continent south of the Arctic, it is called simply "the crow", as no other such birds occur there on any regular basis.

It is one of several species of corvid that are entirely black, though it can be distinguished from the other two such birds in its range—from the Common Raven (C. corax) by size and behavior and from the Fish Crow (C. ossifragus) by call (but see below). It is also distinguished from the Raven by its smaller, more curved bill than the parallell bill of the raven, and its squared tail.

American Crows are common, widespread and adaptable, but they are highly susceptible to the West Nile Virus. They are monitored as a bioindicator. Direct transmission of the virus from American Crows to humans is not recorded to date, and in any case not considered likely .... Most wild American Crows live for about 7–8 years. Captive birds are known to have lived up to 30 years." From Wikipedia.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Crow#Description

talkaboutwildlife.ca/profile/?s=219