29/03/2026
Breaking up the pigeon posts with my resident crows -
This is Zo 🖤
(and his partner Zua in the background of the second pic)
They're an adorable mated pair who have made my garden their territory for years. They both have their individual quirks and behaviours, which is the easiest way to tell them apart.
Zo is the more confident of the two, always landing first to check out the food whilst Zua keeps guard nearby. Sometimes they forage and eat together.
Crows like to cache their snacks and will fake caching if they think other birds are watching. Zo is no different and likes to pick at the food, take it somewhere else in the garden, plop it down and tear out some grass to cover it for later.
Zo's favourite food is peanuts. High in protein and fat, they make the most prized snack. He also likes to dunk his peanuts in the water bowl to soften them before he eats. Sometimes he'll stuff as many as he can in his beak and fly off to stash them elsewhere.
I've also witnessed Zo let off an alarm call. He swooped at the neighbour's cat who was stalking some pigeons on the road and let out a big warning call which gave the pigeons time to scatter. Crows don't like predators (or other crows) in their territory so will do their best to make the cats feel unwelcome
Zo is ever so slightly bigger than Zua and he also has a little white patch on his right wing when it's folded under. I think they recognise me (as a food dispenser, of course) but both crows are incredibly timid toward humans. No, unfortunately they have not brought me gifts yet but I remain hopeful!