Tired of Crows & Ravens in Your Neighborhood? Try This!

Last year, my colleague Connor posted an nice article about the difference between Ravens and Crows and yes, there is a difference.

They are both very intelligent creatures and are described as being as smart as a 7-year old child. READ MORE

While I can appreciate the intelligence of these birds, my beef is with their tendency to dominate a neighborhood or your yard and possibly drive away other varieties of birds.

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This spring and summer, i have noticed very few desirable birds like goldfinches, our state bird and hummingbirds visiting my yard, compared to previous years.  It has been a remarkable difference.  A pair of doves that were nesting in our Colorado Blue spruce were attacked and I witnessed a terrific battle amid the branches.  Now, I only see a solitary dove around our house so I think it lost it's mate in the attack by one of the ravens or crows that lord over the neighborhood.

The hummingbirds that were frequent visitors several times a day have pretty much disappeared from our feeder and while a raven or crow can't intercept them midflight, I suspect they may have had their nests raided.

If you have experienced this in your yard and are tired of noisy and unruly crows or ravens, try this technique.  It seems to be working at our home in Wenatchee in keeping these neighborhood bullies away--for now.

Hang a Fake Dead Crow in the Yard!

It's a very realistic looking dead crow or raven that is marketed as a Halloween decoration but serves as a great deterrent for the birds on you property.  It is supposed to be displayed upside down warning others of it's kind that one of their own has died and to stay away.

This decoy has feathers, plastic claws, a beak and beady eyes and did the trick at my daughters home in Wenatchee.  I have employed it for about 10 days in my backyard and there has been a dramatic difference in the presence of crows or ravens.

The trick I'm told is to place it out at night when the birds are roosting and won't see you deploying the decoy.  It was suggested that I move it to different locations every few evenings so the crows or ravens don't grow complacent or perhaps that there is something very dangerous in my yard and they should avoid the danger by staying away.

So far so good and hopefully the desirable birds will return and the ravens or crows don't seek retribution.  Those of us of a certain age can relate!