What Crows Left Behind After She Forgot Their Food Will Leave You Speechless: ‘They’re Training You’
Ever noticed that crows don’t just caw and flap around like your average bird? Nope, these clever black-clad fellows have locked onto the whole “remember your face” thing—and some folks swear they even leave little thank-you gifts when you’re nice to ’em. Sounds like a quirky urban legend, right? But what if these feathered masterminds are subtly tipping their hats—or rather, dropping a nickel or a soda tab—to their human pals? The idea that crows might be channeling their inner gift-giver raises all sorts of questions about our feathered neighbors. Are these shiny offerings thoughtful tokens or just random junk they happened to drop? Let’s dive into the crow culture that’s been captivating TikTok under the hashtag #CrowTok, where crows and humans blur the lines of friendship in ways that make you wonder who’s really smarter here. Ready to uncover the mystery behind those avian presents?
Crows are known to recognize and remember human faces — but do they intentionally leave gifts behind for people who are friendly to them?
@backyard_shenanagens/TikTokTikTok user @backyard_shenanagens has been feeding crows in her backyard for more than three years.
There’s an online movement on TikTok that fans call “CrowTok.” The idea behind CrowTok is simple: Crows have a good memory. Therefore, if you are nice to crows, they will remember you. Over time, this means that you can form a sort of friendship with them.
Watching some of the videos from CrowTok, it’s difficult to say that there isn’t something to the idea. In a clip with over 4.4 million views, TikTok user @backyard_shenanagens explains that she usually feeds the crows in her backyard. One day, however, she was away all day and therefore could not refill their feeder.
When she returned, she noticed that the crows had left her a gift of a nickel and a top from a soda can.
“Oh my God, guys! I have to go find something for them,” she exclaims. “This is after I gave them the hard-boiled egg the other day.”
@backyard_shenanagens/TikTokThe coin and soda can tab left behind by the crows.
This TikToker isn’t the only one to report receiving gifts from crows. People who feed crows have seen everything from buttons and scraps of metal to pebbles, keys, and other items left behind by the birds. But did the creatures really leave them there on purpose?
Do Crows Leave Behind Gifts For Humans?
Whether crows actually bring humans gifts or simply discard objects near them is a matter of debate. We can’t be sure if crows understand gift-giving, let alone engage in it themselves. Still, there’s plenty of evidence that crows can recognize faces — and even tell friend from foe.
In a 2012 study published in Proceedings of the Royal Society, scientists trapped and banded wild American crows while wearing a specific mask. Later, people wearing the same mask walked through the area, only this time, they did not bother the birds. Even though they were not interacting with the crows, the birds still responded negatively to them — while responding neutrally to people wearing different masks.
UW Video/YouTube
In one study, crows learned to recognize this mask — and they began reacting negatively to it.
Not only that, but the reaction spread to birds that had not been touched by researchers. Crows that had never been captured learned to identify the “dangerous” mask by observing other crows, and young crows appeared to acquire the response from older birds. Other studies have also revealed that crows can remember faces for years, with some evidence suggesting the birds can hold grudges for more than a decade.
Given this, some researchers say it’s technically possible that crows may be intentionally leaving gifts for those who are kind to them. That said, they can’t say definitively whether it’s actually happening. But even if they’re not assembling these items as gifts, they may be using them for something else.
Crows Are Able To Use Tools
Not only do crows have a strong memory, but some are also eager and able craftsmen. New Caledonian crows have become famous for their tool-making abilities, with researchers observing the birds shaping twigs and plant material into probes and hooks in order to better retrieve food.
In captivity, New Caledonian crows have also been observed assembling separate components together into long, compound tools. These tools can be composed of three or four pieces, representing the first known evidence of a non-human animal constructing a compound tool from more than two elements.
Gavin Hunt/University of AucklandA New Caledonian crow using a stick as a tool.
Additionally, New Caledonian crows have been observed using objects to accomplish tasks. In one experiment described in the journal PLOS One, New Caledonian crows were observed dropping items into water-filled tubes to bring a reward to the surface — a real-life reenactment of Aesop’s fable “The Crow and the Pitcher.”
There’s even some evidence that crows understand math, or, at least, a form of counting. In 2024, researchers trained carrion crows to produce a requested number of calls based on certain visual or auditory stimuli. The birds generated between one and four vocalizations, then pecked at a target to show that they were finished.
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