Celebrating a “Caramel” Crow!

By: Melissa Goodwill, Outreach and Education Manager

TWC has a long history of treating American Crows, but none have been as unique as this caramel colored juvenile that was admitted on August 23rd. The light coloring of this crow is the result of a condition called leucism, which affects the retention of pigments in the bird’s feathers. Over the course of treatment this young bird’s feathers did darken, but it will likely always have some lighter than normal coloration.

This individual was admitted with abdominal wounds that required treatment over the course of several weeks. Keeping these wounds covered turned out to be trickier than expected when this extremely intelligent animal quickly figured out how to remove its bandages. The solution was to safely and painlessly duct tape the bandages in place! Despite some removal attempts, the tape held and the wounds healed.

The TWC team was delighted to release this crow into its home territory on October 7th. Two families were eagerly awaiting this crow’s return. First, the human family that had been observing the bird in their yard before it was injured. Because they had spent so much time observing this unique crow, they quickly recognized when it needed help and arranged for admission at TWC.

The second family was, of course, this crow’s family that was still living in the area. American Crows are very social and remain in family groups that include breeding parents and their offspring from several breeding seasons. Some crows may remain with their family groups for up to 5 years.

We hope that this beautiful American Crow will continue to be observed in its release area for many years to come!