Don’t Mess with the Mob
When a potential predator like an owl or another bird of prey threatens their territory, crows will gather and swarm the invader. They will dive-bomb the bird, cawing and pecking at the predator until it surrenders and flees the area. Other birds also use mobbing for defense, and sometimes crows are victims of mobbing attacks by birds that consider the crow a predator.
If you want to know what crow mobbing sounds like, you’ll need to get at least one other person to join you. Once you have your team assembled, keep yelling “caw-caw-caw” as fast and as loud as you can. It’s even more fun if you run around, flapping your arms like a bird. Please note that you won’t be getting a Christmas card from the librarian if you do any of that inside the library.
When you look, you see.
So, where can you see birds mobbing like the crows who chased Bart the barred owl into hiding on the old school bus? Look with your ears first!
Often, when you are outside you’ll hear birds mobbing before you see them. You’ll hear very persistent alert or warning calls, and this can often be just one or two birds. It doesn’t have to be a large group. Once you pinpoint where the calls are coming from, you’ll often see the bird or birds swooping back and forth at either another bird in flight or one perched in a tree. That bird is an unwanted visitor, and the mobbing birds want it to leave. Now!
American crows live just about everywhere in North America, except for parts of southern California and the southwest, and since crows are just as often the “mobbers” as they are the “mobbees,” you’ve got a great chance to see a crow-related mobbing somewhere outside near you!
Gather your crew and gang up on some more mobbing wisdom.
Mobbing behavior amongst birds is pretty common, so hopefully you’ll get a chance to see and hear it for yourself outside. In the meantime, the resources below will help you get some familiarity of what bird mobbing looks and sounds like!
Kids, remember to ask a parent, teacher, or librarian for help whenever you are looking for books or using the Internet. I always try to make sure to share kid-friendly books and resources, but websites are changing all the time, so always check with an adult first.
- This short audio story from BirdNote has a brief explanation on mobbing and a nice example of the sound of crows mobbing: https://www.birdnote.org/show/small-birds-mob-big-ones
- BirdNote also has a video of a bald eagle getting the mob treatment from a group of American Crows! https://www.birdnote.org/video/2018/04/american-crows-mob-bald-eagle
- The Buffalo Bill Center of the West, a Smithsonian-affiliated group of museums about the American West, has a great write-up on bird mobbing behavior, including examples of crows mobbing and being mobbed. https://centerofthewest.org/2019/01/21/mobbing-what-it-is-why-birds-dont-defend-themselves/
- One of the more common targets for crow mobbing is the great horned owl. In this video archived at the Macaulay Library, you can listen to and watch an individual crow harassing a great horned owl who is too close for the crow’s liking: https://macaulaylibrary.org/asset/201438291
- To get an idea of what a large gathering of crows looks and sounds like, check out another video from the Macaulay Library. In this case, the crows aren’t mobbing but instead are settling in to a common roost for the evening: https://macaulaylibrary.org/asset/193112821
- When you see birds mobbing another bird, how can you tell which bird is which? A book like Stokes Beginner’s Guide to Birds by Donald and Lillian Stokes is a great place to start. The book is small enough to carry with you outside, and you can look up birds by their color. There are two versions of the book, one for the eastern region of the United States and one for the western region. Check with your librarian for a copy or ask an adult if they want to pick up a copy for you to keep. I’ve included a link to the eastern region below for them to check with a local bookstore for a copy: https://www.bookstorelink.com/9780316818117