Today, with spring and sunshine in the air, the temperature reached 52°F this afternoon, which was enough to uncover the beaver lodge that was completely covered with snow across the lake just two days ago.
Beaver lodge
Bears are not out yet. They are smart enough to know there is no food yet and it would be best to conserve their calories for other purposes.
Crows gather in tree
Thinking about ‘smart,’ crows returned in March as usual, making me ask my computer “How intelligent are crows?” The computer answered with statements about their tool use, innovation, memory, recognition, complex communications, problem solving, and brain structure—and summed it up saying “Crows are widely considered some of the most intelligent animals on earth, with cognitive abilities comparable to a 7-year-old human child or a great ape.”
Crow caws
I wondered how crows would compare to bears. The computer didn’t mention that bears can recognize the voice of a person saying “It’s me bear” and respond appropriately. It didn’t mention that they can remember rich food sources that their mothers showed them as cubs and return to those places years later as adults in years of scarce berry crops. The computer also didn’t mention that a bear wandered widely to a productive oak stand over a hundred miles outside its home area and was able to return directly home when it was time to hibernate.
Crow takes flight
I thought it was nice that a bird the same color as a bear was getting such high praise for its intelligence. As a result, I couldn’t keep myself from snapping pictures of crows’ intelligent faces and their flights here and there as they were vocalizing various calls in their ‘complex communication’ with over 30 flock-mates. At the same time, with egg-laying coming up in the next 1-3 weeks in this part of Minnesota, some seemed content to sit side by side as pairs.
I haven’t heard of any bear sightings in this part of Minnesota yet, but I’ve got my eyes open.
Thank you for all you do,
Lynn Rogers, Biologist, Wildlife Research Institute and North American Bear Center