Nesting season is fully underway once again, and, as usual, things are going more smoothly for some crows than for others. My next post will give a rundown on how individual crows are doing, but today I’m thinking about the general crow strategies for a successful nesting season. This pivotal period requires some serious tactical thinking — decisions made at the outset of nest-building have big downstream consequences. For example, when to build the nest? With hotter, drier summers becoming the new normal, the impetus is to get started as soon as possible. Fledgling-rearing in drought conditions is really difficult and lowers the survival rate considerably. An early start is, therefore, the obvious way to go — but there are downsides! Any early-built nest is often in a deciduous tree that isn’t fully leafed out, allowing potential predators to observe and memorize the location. This year, we’ve already had a lot of hot, dry weather in Vancouver, so I’ve been putting bowls of water out…
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