Crow

Typical crows and allies

Scientific classification

Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Aves
Order:	Passeriformes
Family:	Corvidae
Genus:	Corvus

The true crows are in the genus Corvus; they are large Passerine birds. As a group they show remarkable examples of intelligence and one species, the New Caledonian Crow, has recently been intensively studied because of its ability to manufacture and use its own tools in the day-to-day finding of food.

All temperate continents (except, surprisingly, South America) and several offshore and oceanic islands (including Hawaii) have representatives of the 40 or so members of this genus.

Crows appear to have evolved in central Asia and radiated out into North America (including Mexico), Africa, Europe, and Australia.

They range in size from the relatively small pigeon-sized jackdaws (Eurasian and Daurian) to the Common Raven of the Palearctic region and Thick-billed Raven of the highlands of Ethiopia.

Australian species:

Australian Raven C. coronoides
Forest Raven C. tasmanicus
- Relict Raven C. t. boreus
Little Crow C. bennetti
Little Raven C. mellori
Torresian Crow C. orru

North American species:

American Crow C. brachyrhynchos
Chihuahuan Raven C. cryptoleucos
Common Raven C. corax
Fish Crow C. ossifragus
Northwestern Crow C. caurinus
Tamaulipas Crow C. imparatus
Sinaloan Crow C. sinaloae

African species:

Cape Crow C. capensis
Fan-tailed Raven C. rhipidurus
Pied Crow C. albus
Thick-billed Raven C. crassirostris
White-necked Raven C. albicollis

North African & Asia Minor species:

Brown-necked Raven C. ruficollis
Hooded Crow C. cornix
Common Raven C. corax
Fan-tailed Raven C. rhipidurus

European species:

Carrion Crow C. corone
Common Raven C. corax
Hooded Crow C. cornix
Jackdaw C. monedula
Rook C. frugilegus

Asian species:

Carrion Crow C. corone
Collared Crow C. torquatus
Daurian Jackdaw C. dauricus
House Crow C. splendens
Jungle Crow C. macrorhynchos
Rook C. frugilegus

The islands between Southeast Asia and Australia have several species, as do the West Indies off the east coast of the North American continent. A few Pacific islands (including Hawaii) have representative species also.

Hawaiian Crow or 'Alala' C. hawaiiensis (formerly C. tropicus)
New Caledonian crow C. moneduloides
Cuban Crow C. nasicus
Jamaican Crow C. jamaicensis
White-necked Crow C. leucognaphalus
Guadalcanal Crow C. woodfordi
Gray Crow C. tristis

For more information regarding crows, see the individual species. For more information regarding relatives of the crows, such as magpies and jays, see Corvidae.

Full species list of genus Corvus

Eurasian Jackdaw, Corvus monedula
Daurian Jackdaw, Corvus dauricus
House Crow, Corvus splendens
New Caledonian Crow, Corvus moneduloides
Slender-billed Crow, Corvus enca
Piping Crow, Corvus typicus
Banggai Crow, Corvus unicolor
Flores Crow, Corvus florensis
Mariana Crow, Corvus kubaryi
Long-billed Crow, Corvus validus
Guadalcanal Crow, Corvus woodfordi
Bougainville Crow, Corvus meeki
Brown-headed Crow, Corvus fuscicapillus
Gray Crow, Corvus tristis
Cape Crow, Corvus capensis
Rook, Corvus frugilegus
American Crow, Corvus brachyrhynchos
Northwestern Crow, Corvus caurinus
Cuban Palm Crow, Corvus minutus
Hispaniolan Palm Crow, Corvus palmarum
Cuban Crow, Corvus nasicus
White-necked Crow, Corvus leucognaphalus
Jamaican Crow, Corvus jamaicensis
Tamaulipas Crow, Corvus imparatus
Sinaloa Crow, Corvus sinaloae
Fish Crow, Corvus ossifragus
Hawaiian Crow, Corvus hawaiiensis
Chihuahuan Raven, Corvus cryptoleucus
Carrion Crow, Corvus corone
Large-billed Crow, Corvus macrorhynchos
Torresian Crow, Corvus orru
Little Crow, Corvus bennetti
Australian Raven, Corvus coronoides
Little Raven, Corvus mellori
Forest Raven, Corvus tasmanicus
Collared Crow, Corvus torquatus
Pied Crow, Corvus albus
Brown-necked Raven, Corvus ruficollis
Fan-tailed Raven, Corvus rhipidurus
White-necked Raven, Corvus albicollis
Thick-billed Raven, Corvus crassirostris
Common Raven Corvus corax