i am not sinister. i am thorough, and i read the bins.
Carrion crow says
Bird 2 of 30 · video, 06:22
Carrion crow
Corvus corone
All black, powerful-billed and clever, with a tough reputation it only partly deserves.
- Large, 508.7 g
- Not stated
- High in a tree
- Cliff ledge
- On the ground or lawn
About the carrion crow
Marks and dots
Tap a numbered dot, or a name in the list.
All black plumage, the same in males and females.
A powerful beak, one reason crows look so tough.
From egg to adult
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Egg
Eggs3–4 eggs≠BTOthe video says 3–5 eggs
Hatch after20 days video, BTO agrees
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Chick in the nest
In the nest for28.5–29.5 days≠BTOthe video says about 35 days
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Young bird
Young crows usually leave the nest after about five weeks, but may stay with their parents until late summer and even into autumn.
Adult
All black, powerful beak
Broods a year1 brood BTO
BTO averages: 18 days incubating the eggs, then 29 days in the nest. Averages across nest records, so the figures above can differ a little.
At the table
- scraps from bins
- nuts, dropped to crack
Crows pick over dead wildlife, road casualties especially, and will take other birds' eggs and sometimes nestlings. They empty supermarket bins, and drop snail shells and nuts from a height onto a hard surface to crack them.
Through the year
Carrion crow: first eggs laid 14 Mar to 29 Apr, average 7 Apr (BTO); first chicks leave the nest 30 Apr to 17 Jun (worked out from BTO).
What to know about the carrion crow
Eight short notes in our own words. Each chip says what the note stands on, and links to its row in the table below.
What to look for
Black plumage and a powerful beak give crows a sinister look. Males and females look the same.
The young
Young crows usually leave the nest after about five weeks, but may stay with their parents until late summer and even into autumn.
Song and call
The video does not describe the crow's voice on its own page. It does say a rook's caw is harsher than a crow's call.
Nest
The bulky nests are easy to see, high up in trees, or on cliff ledges near the coast.
Feeding
Crows pick over dead wildlife, road casualties especially, and will take other birds' eggs and sometimes nestlings. They empty supermarket bins, and drop snail shells and nuts from a height onto a hard surface to crack them.
Staying or leaving
Very common in the countryside and often seen in towns. The video does not say whether crows move about with the seasons.
In the garden
Resourceful and intelligent, and devoted parents. A pair stays faithful for life.
Sources and checks
Where every fact about the carrion crow came from
16 claims about the carrion crow: 1 checked, 10 from the video only,2 differ, 3 from a source only. How the grades work
| Claim, in our words | Video time | Grade | What the source says |
|---|---|---|---|
| Crows have black plumage and powerful beaks. | 06:25 | video only | |
| Male and female crows are alike in appearance. | 07:01 | video only | |
| Crows pick over the remains of wildlife casualties, road deaths especially, and steal eggs and sometimes nestlings of other birds. | 06:32 | video only | |
| Crows clear supermarket waste bins and open snail shells and nuts by dropping them onto a hard surface. | 06:46 | video only | |
| The crow is resourceful and intelligent. | 06:46 | video only | |
| Crows are extremely dedicated parents and pair for life. | 07:03 | video only | |
| Crows are very common in rural areas and also seen often in towns. | 07:12 | video only | |
| Bulky crow nests are easy to see high in trees, or on cliff ledges near the coast. | 07:17 | video only | |
| A brood has three to five eggs.video: 3–5 eggs | 07:25 | ≠differs | BTO, read 2026-10-05: 3–4 eggs (BTO typical)outside BTO's typical range of 3–4, though inside the 2–7 BTO has observed |
| The eggs hatch after 20 days.video: 20 days | 07:28 | checked | BTO, read 2026-10-05: 18–20 days (BTO typical)inside BTO's typical range of 18–20 |
| The young usually leave the nest after about five weeks.video: about 35 days | 07:30 | ≠differs | BTO, read 2026-10-05: 28.5–29.5 days (BTO typical)outside BTO's typical range of 28.5–29.5, though inside the 22–35.5 BTO has observed |
| Young crows may stay with their parents until late summer and even into autumn. | 07:33 | video only | |
| A rook's caw is much harsher than a crow's call. | 09:44 | video only | |
| Adult weight, from ringing records: 508.7 g, adult average. | source only | source only | BTO, read 2026-10-05: 508.7 g, adult average |
| Timing of the first clutch: first eggs laid around 7 Apr (14 Mar-29 Apr). | source only | source only | BTO, read 2026-10-05: first eggs laid around 7 Apr (14 Mar-29 Apr) |
| Typical broods in a year: 1 brood (BTO typical). | source only | source only | BTO, read 2026-10-05: 1 brood (BTO typical) |
Written in our own words after “British Birds in your Garden” by The Great British Channel, where the carrion crow starts at 06:22.Numbers are checked against the BTO's page for the carrion crow, read on 5 October 2026. We are not connected to the channel or to the BTO.
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