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Many of us experienced our gardens invaded by large flocks of crows, ravens, or similar birds. They tend to dominate bird life in such areas, reducing overall garden biodiversity.

In my case, crows have moved into our neighborhood big time, and they're monopolizing our bird feeders (plus making a mess on my car). Any suggestions for how to discourage the crows without scaring away the other birds (finches, cardinals, nuthatches, the occasional woodpecker or hummingbird). (Though if I can also discourage grackles that's a plus.)

I'm thinking something like a sonic unit that broadcasts a crow distress call, but the units I find online are 1) pretty expensive, for the most part, and 2) poorly documented -- not clear whether they can be set up to broadcast ONLY adult crow distress calls, vs more general calls or juvenile distress calls that are intended to attract prey.

I'd also like something (if it's an "active" scheme of any kind) that I can turn on and off, activating it only when crows are observed.

(I'm not a birder, but, based on the Wikipedia article for "American crow", the birds I'm dealing with match the appearance and call ("caw-caw-caw") of Corvus brachyrhynchos.)

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_crow

Any suggestions?

Images from the next town over:

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VividD
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Hot Licks
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    I have to stay away from this question. Us humans only want the 'cute' stuff when in actuality there has to be predators to keep all in order. Ravens and crows are almost equal to our intelligence, smarter if we had to compete in their world existing and trying survive in our world. They mate for life. They clean up dead stuff to include our own crap. I actually FEED my ravens all our big left overs such as chicken wings, old meat loaf. They do not bother with the bird and rabbit food I feed the other animals. Ravens/crows are very beautiful and important animals esp. for urban areas. – stormy Apr 02 '17 at 22:18
  • ...AND by encouraging the lesser predators; ravens/crows they protect their territory from Eagles, Owls and the other poor higher predators. Don't forget they love grubs, slugs and other insects... – stormy Apr 02 '17 at 22:21
  • The problem is that crows move into an area where they previously were not common and they take it over, pushing out many other species and making life miserable for humans. They've been a major problem in the next town over (in SW Minnesota) for 8-10 years now, and they are beginning to move into our area. I'd like to discourage them. – Hot Licks Apr 02 '17 at 23:51
  • Don't forget 'Hitchcock' 'the Birds'. There is no way to discourage them other than do NOT leave food out even for the song birds. No trash they can get into...steel cans. Scare crows DO WORK and very much fun to make. Very useful for Halloween as well. The main thing is stop leaving any food of any kind out otherwise these brilliant birds (Jurassic Park and the Raptors?) will be around. And I for one would NOT piss them off!! Grins!! Try Scarecrows! Move them around. Put automated strings on them to keep them moving. Big sheets of brilliant fabric, blowing in the wind as well! – stormy Apr 03 '17 at 01:21
  • This is all because of us humans...we are creating these very smart birds and no way should we try to control them. You must live in a transition zone between Urban and rural. I would be very vigilant about bears, cougars and bobcat as well. Do not place kiddie play areas near the back of your property. Keep your dryer vents and all vents/chimney openings screened. They aren't the bad guys. Us greedy humans are the dumb dudes that caused this mess and many other messes. Don't do hummingbird feeders either. Not good for hummingbirds. Grow flowers they love...be vigilant. Check tracks – stormy Apr 03 '17 at 01:28
  • @stormy - You know nothing about where I live. The last bobcat sighted around here was about 30 years ago, and there are no bears within probably 300 miles (except a couple at the local zoo). Cougars? Not a chance. – Hot Licks Apr 03 '17 at 01:42
  • Which part of the world? (The meaning of "crow" depend on it). I have some crowns and they are pleasant, they recognize you and what you are doing. And I have also a lot of other wild birds. – Giacomo Catenazzi Apr 03 '17 at 07:06
  • This is the "upper midwest". A "crow" here is a large solid black bird, perhaps the size of a small chicken. They have traditionally inhabited corn (maize) and other grain fields, but have recently invaded other areas. And I suspect they've stopped migrating farther south for the winter, as many seem to overwinter here. – Hot Licks Apr 03 '17 at 11:56
  • I asked the region, because there are many types of crows, see a list in https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crow so it depends on the part of the world for some more specific behaviour. I speak about the European ones (and the "small ones" i.e. not the "raven", so I mean the European the Corvus cornix) – Giacomo Catenazzi Apr 03 '17 at 12:29
  • Not knowing the exact species makes life difficult. In the UK *Corvus corone* is one of the most common. It primarily feeds on carrion - they like road kill. The only birds I have seen affected by them are buzzards and red kites: they mob them whilst airborne to drive them away. They don't scare easily. If they are feeding from your bird feeders, you will have more luck by using bird feeders designed specifically for small birds. – George of all trades Apr 03 '17 at 13:04
  • @HotLicks Of course I don't know where you live but I do know a thing or two about wildlife. Just because bobcats have not been sighted for 30 years doesn't mean a thing. It takes 350 sq. miles of wilderness per male cougar for instance. That hasn't changed just because we humans have taken and used up and are using up their space. So wildlife is learning how to adapt, that is how we humans are 'creating' these smart animals/birds. I have ravens here; the size of a huge chicken or better the size of a small eagle. Brilliant, scary brilliant animals. – stormy Apr 03 '17 at 18:18
  • If there is food, there will be opportunists to get at that food. Giacomo had a great idea as there are feeders/bird houses that cater to just song birds...size of opening, etc. But just be aware that those crows/ravens will be trying to figure out how to get at that food. That is why I suggested scare crow mannequins that you move around. Seriously smart birds. As well as no food on your property. Did you think I was being facetious? If there are food supplies, you will always have these birds and other wildlife 'scoping' out your property. – stormy Apr 03 '17 at 18:22
  • I lost 3 goats to cougars. I know how to track and all the sign. I was on TV with a reporter in a fur coat and heels I had to carry on my back to get up to the site. Amazing. There was a lair not 50 feet from my back door I had no idea was there. I had a big black very fit cop with a humongous shot gun helping me look for two of my goats who was shaking in fear. I saw a shadow which later I realized was the cougar right next to his lair. Latere I saw the cougar and shot over his head and he just sorta gave me the finger and walked away. Beautiful animals. They belong, we do not. – stormy Apr 03 '17 at 18:28
  • I absolutely adore crows, so I think these pictures are magnificent! Even if I didn't like them, however, I still see this question as off-topic. It doesn't mention how the presence of crows, or scaring them away, might affect your garden. It might be worth contacting a moderator and asking for it to be migrated to [The Great Outdoors](http://outdoors.stackexchange.com/). Bird-watching and bird-behavior are on-topic, and there are already some questions about crows. Why don't you have a look around and see if that would suit you. – Sue Saddest Farewell TGO GL Apr 06 '17 at 20:57
  • @Sue But, it is clear to me that the question is in the context of gardening - it doesn't have to mention the word 'garden' several times to be so. If the question is posted on this site, it is not in the context of economy, chemistry, artificial intelligence, photography, or computer repairs - it is in the context of gardening, and the answers are supposed to be in the same context, and I don't see anything inappropriate in it. – VividD Dec 15 '17 at 08:21

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It is very difficult. Crows are one of the most intelligent birds, they recognize you, they understand what you are doing. So they will learn quick about your methods. a lot quicker then other birds.

From my experience, they are not so competitive other other birds, i.e. they eat different things. Woodpeckers and black birds have no problems with crows, and also most of the small birds (from my experience), but I'm on a "wild" environment, so I see around 10 crows. On some open fields (near landfill) they are much more numerous.

Crows are also much more urban then most other birds, so they like our trashes and they are quick to learn to eat new foods. So you can try to have a much more wild environment, remove all trashes (and pet foods) from reach of crows.

I see that my chicken drive away crows, if they land near them or near their food.

I think cats help too, by removing the prey of crows: mouses and small animals, but cats will "remove" also the small birds. (I never see a cat challenging a crow).

Giacomo Catenazzi
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  • The main problem is that the crows drive the other birds away, birds that have lived in the neighborhood for 40 years. I don't know what they're feeding on -- yes, there is a little urban trash, but this is a very clean area generally, and there is very little trash left out where the crows can get it. They love my peanut and large bird feeders, though, and seem to like prowling the park nearby, presumably for worms and bugs. – Hot Licks Apr 03 '17 at 12:00
  • In the neighboring "large" town (Rochester, MN) they invaded 8-10 years ago, making the parks often uninhabitable. Mayo Clinic and others have had some luck with sonic repellents which apparently play distress calls, which is mainly why I posed this problem. (Unfortunately, in the past two years two different excellent bird stores in Rochester have closed due to developers wanting to put up big condos in their place.) – Hot Licks Apr 03 '17 at 12:03
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    Note: for trash I mean a very general concept, Biodegradable stuffs are also trash, which are eaten by crows. Also rest of salads, apple cores etc are food for crows. But if the problem is as show in the picture you recently added, I don't think you can have many answer here. Maybe biology.SE (but I think it is also off-topic, too much practical), or some local authorities about pests could help more. A so large problem cannot be solved by a single person. – Giacomo Catenazzi Apr 03 '17 at 12:35