THE
RAVEN.
This is the largest bird that feeds on carrion, and is of a fine shining colour; in some places it is very serviceable, in eating up the stinking flesh or carcases of dead beasts and other carrion, but in many other places very mischievous, and does a great deal of harm. I having been allowed as much per head for killing them as I had for kites and hawks, as they are equally pernicious in killing and devouring young rabbits, ducklings and chickens.
I know of no better way to catch them, where they become troublesome, than to set two traps for them, in the same manner as you do for the buzzard, [see plate VI. fig. 1.] and put a rat between them for a bait, but when you have taken one or two, you must move your traps to another place, or the others will prove too shy to be caught; for as soon as one is taken, great numbers will keep round him, and seeing him fast, will grow suspicious of some danger, and not come near the place any more; but by observing the above method, in moving the traps, I have caught great numbers of them in a day, though it is attended with some labour and trouble.
I have often caught the London Ravens near twenty miles from home, in warrens, where they will sometimes come after the young Rabbits; by the London Ravens I mean those that generally frequent the outskirts of the metropolis, and live upon the filth lying there, grubbing up the dirt in order to get at their food, from whence the tops of their wings become of a nasty, dusky brown colour, occasioned by their wallowing in the dirt, by which means they are easily distinguishable from the country Ravens, which are as black as jet, according to the old saying, As black as a Raven.
I have seen some of these Ravens sit upon a lamb, that has been dropped weak, not being able to run, when they have got to his head and picked out the creature’s eyes while yet alive. Another remark I shall make, which is to point out the difference between the manner of birds of the hawk kind carrying their prey, and those of the carrion kind. Now it is observable that buzzards, kites, hawks and owls, constantly carry their prey in their claws, whereas Ravens, carrion-crows and magpies carry their food in their beaks.
THE
CARRION
CROW.
This bird is well known, and in country places will do prodigious mischief, by destroying young rabbits, chickens and ducks, and likewise in sucking eggs, which the hens and ducks lay in the back yards or in the hedges: these the Crows will break and eat as greedily as any other vermin whatever. Now if you find they have any haunts about your house, get a steel trap, of the same kind as you use for other winged vermin; set it in the ground, quite level with the surface, and cover it with moss; then take a little piece of bush or some fern, stick some of it down, by one jaw quite low, and bring it round to the other jaw, [see plate VI. fig. 1.] put the bait, whether it be an egg, or rat, a piece of rabbit, or the guts of the same, or any thing else of this sort, in the back part, on the tail of the trap; and when you have put the little fence, before described all around, as a guide for him, he must of necessity go over the trap for the bait, and be caught; but I have been plagued with these as much as I have been with the Ravens, by being obliged to move the trap after every Crow I had taken; but by observing when one is caught, which you may easily hear, for they then make a great noise and keep flying round their imprisoned brother, almost close to the ground, you may then probably get a shoot, and kill some of them; but sometimes I have known them so shy that I could not get them to the trap at any rate. In this case you must observe the places where they most frequent, and take a cat, or a ferret, and tie it to a stake; then take a gun, and hide yourself, when the first Crow that sees the cat or ferret will make a terrible screaming noise, and bring many more, who scream and hover about till you have a fair shoot. In this manner I have had, sometimes, three or four shoots before they dispersed, and killed several of them; for when they see any kind of animal they are not used to, in the day-time, it greatly attracts their attention, and they wonder at it, as the small birds do at the sight of an owl by day-light; and this is the best way to get at the shy ones. I have seen the Crows pick out the eyes of a weak lamb, while alive, in the same manner as the ravens will.
