For American bird enthusiast and musician Stuart Dahlquist, it was nothing short of a mind-blowing surprise when a pair of crows left him a present. In a tweet posted on May 24, 2019 Dahlquist had shared his experience with his followers on Twitter as he posted the picture of the creative present left by the pair of crows for his family. The musician told his followers that he and his family have been feeding a small family of four crows, which includes a mated pair and their two-year-old offspring for several years. As a gesture of gratitude, a week before the tweet was posted, the pair of crows left the gifts two days in a row.
The gift which Dahlquist talks about was made by the crows. The birds used the pull tabs from aluminium cans and threaded them onto pine twigs. Dahlquist commented on the gesture and mentioned in his tweet, “This isn't only generous, it's creative, it's art. My mind is blown.”
We've been feeding a small family of four crows (mated pair and their two year old kids) for several years. Last week two days in a row they left these gifts, pull tabs threaded onto pine twigs. This isn't only generous, it's creative, it's art. My mind is blown. pic.twitter.com/tT5ORZ3AHL— Stuart Dahlquist (@StuartDahlquist) March 24, 2019
Although the tweet was posted more than two years ago, Dahlquist’s tweet continues to amaze netizens even today. A recent comment on the tweet read, “That's absolutely incredible.” A curious netizen commented, “I love crows. What do you feed them?”
That's absolutely incredible.— Frank Küsel (@frankkusel) October 22, 2021
I love crows 🥰 What do you feed them?— Eileen @crazycatlady (@Culldogfarms) April 17, 2021
After his tweet had attracted significant traction, Dahlquist answered one of the most asked questions, which was what did he feed the crows that led to such a spectacular reaction. The tweet posted on May 29, 2019 read, "I finally read a few of the responses to our crow gifts and the burning question seems to be ‘what do you feed them?’ They really like high quality dry cat food, something with a lot of protein and very little filler, lots of meat, no corn. Oddly, crows aren't fond of corn.”
I finally read a few of the responses to our crow gifts and the burning question seems to be 'what do you feed them?'. They really like high quality dry cat food, something with a lot of protein and very little filler, lots of meat, no corn. Oddly crows aren't fond of corn.— Stuart Dahlquist (@StuartDahlquist) March 28, 2019
The answer to crows’ behaviour as shown by this tweet lies in science. American non-profit environmental organization dedicated to conservation of birds and their habitat, Audubon reports that crows are members of the corvid family, which are highly intelligent creatures that make tools, recognize individual humans, and learn from one another. Even though wild crows are not known to create or display art, John Marzluff, conservation ecologist at the University of Washington, told the publication that they occasionally leave behind objects like keys, lost earrings, bones, or rocks, for the people who feed them, a behaviour which he describes as “gifting.”
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