Hi all! :)

[HummerHaven]

Crows are omnivores, but rarely kill, they prefer dead meat. However if they are really hungry, they will take nestlings or very small chicks, other small mammals and lizards, etc....But generally they will eat what ever is available rather than risk being hurt trying to make a kill, unlike birds of prey. This said, I'd keep chicks under 3 months old under watchful eyes if you have Crows or Ravens living in your territory. It's extremely unlikely a Crow could take out a grown chicken, Crows being smaller than this potential prey. My Ravens have never even considered coming near my chickens and they are about the same size as a medium sized hen.

Wow I totally wasn't thinking about chicks when I read the question but that makes so much sense. I know my chick run will be covered so I'm not worried but it's good info to have. Better safe than sorry I say I just kinda get the live and let live vibe from crows in general (I haven't seen a raven in the wild yet) but I think there's so much that can be done to prevent an aerial attack (which at least in our area would more likely come from hawks and eagles). Unless of course you free range. For us that's out of the question as we are in a predator rich environment.

 

[TwoCrows]

Yeah I suspected as much (about them feeling threatened) and you are absolutely right the gift really isn't closeness it's their majestic presence, anything above and beyond is just gravy! They are after all wild animals so I would keep a respectful distance anyway. But it is nice that some of them let me watch them eat through the kitchen window (if I crouch and don't move a lot) The ones that are the most skittish appear to be juveniles or maybe lower on the pecking order? I don't know but there's one that watches me back and seems to be the leader, I call him Muninn 'cause he's the biggest :lol
The hummers we get here are ruby throated and calliope's (once last year I think we got a rufous) but mostly ruby throated. We ended up having to separate our feeders pretty far apart because of all the fighting. This year I'm going to hang hummer houses in the old oak tree as well as planting a TON of hummer favs like salvia, sunflowers, honeysuckle and beebalm. There's a lot I'm forgetting lol. Not to mention the herbs I want to plant by the chicken run! So many plans! Lol

I have heard the Rufus hummers are moving east! We get hoards of them and they are the more aggressive hummer. They are the longest distance migator, some traveling all the way up to the Arctic to breed. And when they need feed, no other hummer is going to stop them! I put up about 6 quart feeders, in the summer I can go through 1 1/2 to 2 gallons of feed a day. I hope you see more Rufus hummers this year, and good luck with all your plans!

 

[HummerHaven]

I have heard the Rufus hummers are moving east! We get hoards of them and they are the more aggressive hummer. They are the longest distance migator, some traveling all the way up to the Arctic to breed. And when they need feed, no other hummer is going to stop them! I put up about 6 quart feeders, in the summer I can go through 1 1/2 to 2 gallons of feed a day. I hope you see more Rufus hummers this year, and good luck with all your plans!

All I really caught was a little flash of rust and a slightly bigger hummer so I can't say for certain. I'm just learning the types of hummers here but my neighbor said it was probably a rufous A lot of the hummers last year seemed to be female which made it harder to figure out. That's why I'm planning on hanging the woven houses in the oak, so the females don't have far to commute Not sure if they'll use them but why not try right? I'll be getting more feeders this year too so some can be in the deep shade. My layout will be hummers on one side of the house (by the flower garden) and chicks on the other side (by the veg garden) hopefully that works I'm excited to see if I get Rufus too!