Eurasian Jackdaw Corvus monedula
Etymology:
- Corvus : Latin Word for Raven
- Monedula: moneta- money; edo –to eat; in GR. MYTH Arne of Thrace was turned into a jackdaw after betraying her country to Minos of Crete for gold
- Soemmerringii : Samuel Thomas von Sömmerring (1755-1830) German anatomist
Vernacular name: Kash: Kavin
Distribution in India: Resident of North West Himalayas (Union territories of Jammu & Kashmir & Ladhak)
Description: Size of 34–39 cm; Weight of 136–265 g; wingspan of 64–74 cm. It is a small, sociable crow with moderately long tail somewhat rounded at tip, small and short bill; flattish forecrown, feathers can be raised to form slight mid-crown crest. It is agile in flight, flocks soar and tumble, pausing to hang over cliff faces. The nominate race has forecrown blackish with slight bluish gloss, rear crown, nape and side of head contrastingly pale grey, distinct whitish collar at base of nape. The remainder of plumage is dark grey, upperparts with weak bluish sheen, upperwing and tail are similar but darker. The iris is light greyish-white; bill and legs are black. Both the sexes are similar. The juvenile has dark iris and entire head, and body plumage is softer, tinged brownish and without gloss. By first autumn most of head and body plumage replaced and adult-like, contrasting with older (worn) wing and tail feathers. The dark iris may persist until end of first winter.
Races found in India:Soemmerringii is paler grey than previous, especially on nape, and has very distinct pale collar, finishes in wider whitish blotch at side of neck.
Habitat: It is found in great variety of open country, preferably with scattered trees. It favours mixed farmland, parks and gardens, churchyards, wooded steppe, quarries and coastal cliffs. It ascends to 2000 m in breeding season. In non-breeding they ascend to 3500 m in Kashmir.
Food Habits: It is omnivorous, but less of a carnivorous scavenger than most congeners. It feeds on grasshoppers, ants, moth caterpillars and beetles ;eggs of both small and large birds. It feeds chiefly on the ground, walking with bold, strutting gait, as it searches for insects; side-hops to catch prey items. It perches on cattle and sheep to feed on ectoparasites. It rarely stores food items, and even then seems not to bury them.
Breeding Habits: They breed in first half May in Kashmir. They have a long-term pair-bond. Both the sexes take part in construction of nest, which varies in size, but can be massive as fresh nest built each year on top of older ones. The foundation is a mass of branches and twigs, interspersed with mud and dung, inner cup quite deep and thick, of mosses, rotten wood, feathers and fur and wool, usually in some cavity like tree hole or rock crevice in quarry. They lay a clutch of 3–8 eggs. The incubation is done by female for a period of 17–19 days. The chicks are fed by both parents. The nestling period is 30 days. The family-members soon join up with others and form quite substantial summer flocks. First breeding when they are 2 years old.