When it comes to birds, crows often get a bad rap.
Some people associate the jet-black birds with bad omens, but in actuality, corvids are highly intelligent scavengers capable of adapting to their environment, making analogies, and communicating. Researchers say ravens and crows are some of the world’s most intelligent birds. In fact, they have about the same intelligence level as a 7-year-old human child!
Crows are the only non-primates who make tools, and although we don’t understand it, scientists believe they even have their own language. They can solve puzzles, recognize human faces, and hold grudges against people who are mean to them.
TikToker Tango has firsthand knowledge of how smart and clever crows are. When she moved into her new home in Virginia almost three years ago, she immediately started feeding the birds. She especially noticed the crows, and she began leaving them peanuts.
But it wasn’t until she was staying home more due to the COVID quarantines that she began paying closer attention to the birds in her backyard.
At first, the crows simply watched Tango as she puttered around her yard. She tried chatting with them, and over time, they stopped flying away and began to trust her. Now, they show up every morning and call out to her to feed them their breakfast!
In exchange for all the yummy food she leaves them, the crows started bringing her small items as gifts. She has a huge jar of trinkets these days, everything from shiny coins to twisty ties from bread packages.
Tango grew up around birds. Her father used to breed and rescue parrots, and they even helped rehabilitate an injured crow when she was a kid. As an adult, she owns an 8-year-old Indian ringneck parakeet named Apollo, whom she raised from an egg. So it’s safe to say that Tango was the perfect person to befriend this “murder” of crows!
So far, Tango’s favorite gift from the birds is a pretty blue marble. Another favorite came just recently: an American dime… and a coin from Europe!
“I don’t know where they found a Euro in Virginia, but this is probably the coolest present they’ve ever left, and definitely the coolest thing that’s ever happened to me,” Tango said.
Tango said people who are interested in communing with their own crow friends should first research their diet and behavior — and also remember that these are wild animals, not pets. She’s glad her TikTok channel is raising awareness for how incredibly cool crows are!
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