Mr. Walker — Good News

May 6, 2023 / The Urban Nature Enthusiast / 10 Comments

It’s been almost two weeks since something happened to Mr.Walker’s eye and I know a lot of you are wondering how our favourite crow perambulator is doing.

I was out of town for three days last week so it was with a mixture of hope and dread that I went straight out upon arrival home to go check on the Walkers.

It is with huge relief that I report that things are looking Much Better.

This is how his eye was on April 24 …

And here is how he is looking now …

His eye still isn’t 100% better, but it’s very much improved. I love the photo above because you can see that he’s back to most of his old confidence, curiosity and all around delightful Mr. Walker-ness.

I still don’t know what exactly happened but suspect his eye was injured in some sort of conflict with another crow. I know the male crows are hyper-territorial as the females are sitting on the nests, so he could have been in a fight with one of his male neighbours — possibly Bongo or Mr. Wing. No one’s talking, so I guess we’ll never know for sure.

Thanks so much for all the good wishes and advice during this worrying time — the crow-munity is the best!

__________________________________________________________________________________________

© junehunterimages, 2023. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to junehunterimages with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

Mr Walker’s Bad Monday

April 24, 2023 / The Urban Nature Enthusiast / 13 Comments

There’s a lot of local crow news right now (Wings, Bongo, P.Earl) but unfortunate circumstances bring me back to the Walkers today.

I saw the Walkers on the weekend and all seemed totally fine, if a little soggy.

This morning I saw Mr. Walker, but he wasn’t walking. He did fly over to me and then I saw his eye …

I tried to convince myself I’d got mixed up and this was Wanda, who IS blind in one eye — but I knew it was Mr W and they eye injury looked quite different from Wanda’s. Also, the other eye.

Wanda in the cherry tree last week

I put out a call for help from bird rehabbers and those with more knowledge than me on social media and received lots and lots of great suggestions. I also got in touch with our local wildlife rescue association, sending photos, and they suggested we take a wait and see approach.

I’m sincerely hoping it’s just a minor injury and he’ll recover without me having to attempt to get him into a box. I have zero crow trapping experience and I fear he is likely smarter than me.

Besides which, it would be a terrible time to take him away as Wanda is already, as I mentioned in the last post, making begging sounds and showing other signs that she’s either laid eggs or is about to, and will be 100% dependent on Mr Walker for food in the nest for awhile.

I went for a second visit this afternoon and saw the Walkers together at our usual meeting tree.

Mr Walker on the lower branch

I did notice in one of the photos I took this afternoon that his eye was open a little, which seemed like a big improvement, so fingers crossed it looks better and not worse tomorrow. I’ll keep you posted.

__________________________________________________________________________________________

Sounds of Springtime

April 18, 2023 / The Urban Nature Enthusiast / 5 Comments

It can be a bit confusing to hear the sounds of fledgling crows begging loudly for food as early as April.

We’re still weeks away from the excitement of the first fledgling appearances — so what’s going on?

You’re hearing the sound of female crows begging food from their mates. They sound just like hungry fledglings and also adopt the classic begging pose — wings out, head lowered.

It’s just another part of the nesting dance. The construction of the nest is probably complete and the female is getting ready to lay eggs, but first she needs to remind her mate that she, just like the helpless fledgling she’s mimicking, is going to be relying on him for food soon.

The Walkers have been displaying this behaviour for a week or so now.

Mr Walker feeding his mate, Wanda

Shortly before laying eggs the female crow loses feathers on a patch of her underside so that her body heat will pass to the eggs without any feathery insulation getting in the way. This is called a brood patch — and only the mother crow has one — so for two to three weeks it’s her job to sit on the nest and incubate the precious eggs, while her mate is responsible for guarding the nest and keeping her fed. If he fails, she will be brooding in more way than one …

Wanda (blind in one eye) in a cherry tree

Wanda is starting to insist that Mr. Walker feed her, even when she’s got a beak full of food already, just to jog his crow brain into remembering his coming duties.

Mr. Walker, dependable father to be

Here’s a little phone video series of the current daily routine.

Part one: As always, Mr. Walker dashes along beside us. At the moment his route is decorated with drifts of pink snow from fallen cherry blossom petals.

Part two: As usual, Wanda arrives at the peanut destination first (having come via air travel) and gets first dibs on the snacks.

Part three: in spite of having more than her share of peanuts, Wanda insists that Mr. W feeds her some of his. He gallantly obliges.

The Walkers at Home

Let’s hope the Walkers have a successful season. Like many of the local crows, their 2022 nesting efforts went unrewarded, so a couple of new little Walkers this year would be extra nice.