Hi Peter,
Food caching is common in corvids and research into this behaviour suggests
that it is a compulsive motivational instinct.
A number of studies have recorded stone-collecting by corvids. The generally
accepted theory is that this behaviour is conducted mostly by juvenile or
immature corvids who are instinctively drawn to collecting objects, but
haven't yet refined their behaviour to cache edible food items only.
A good summary of this behaviour is given in the following paper:
Grodzinski, U. & Clayton, N.S. (2010). Problems faced by food-caching
corvids and evolution of cognitive solutions. Philosophical Transactions of
the Royal Society. Biological Sciences. 365 (1542): 977-987.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2830244/
Regards,
Stephen
Stephen Ambrose
Ryde, NSW
-----Original Message-----
From:
On Behalf Of Peter Ridgeway
Sent: Thursday, 7 April 2011 10:27 AM
To:
Subject: Raven stone 'fossiking'
An interesting observation from colleague Phil Mulhearn:
'In front of my apartment is a large flat roof covered with pebbles. One
morning recently I observed a raven fossicking among the pebbles -
surprising as there is nothing to eat there. I observed that he had a large
pebble in his bill, about 15mm diameter (too big to swallow). Around the
pebbled roof there is a low wall and it is very difficult to access. Yet
every now and again a new pebble appears on top of it. Could the ravens be
putting them there and if so why?'
Has anyone seen similar behaviour before?
Peter Ridgeway | Volunteer Coordinator| Birds Australia Discovery Centre
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