Large-billed crow

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Large-billed crow
Jungle crow (Close-up of the head area), Tennoji Park, Osaka II.jpg
C. m. japonensis at Tennōji Park in Osaka, Japan
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Corvidae
Genus: Corvus
Species:
C. macrorhynchos
Binomial name
Corvus macrorhynchos
Wagler, 1827
Corvus macrohynchos map.jpg
Range

The large-billed crow (Corvus macrorhynchos), formerly referred to widely as the jungle crow, is a widespread Asian species of crow. It is very adaptable and is able to survive on a wide range of food sources, making it capable of colonizing new areas, due to which it is often considered a nuisance, especially on islands. It has a large bill, which is the source of its scientific name macrorhynchos (Ancient Greek for "long-billed") and it is sometimes known by the common name thick-billed crow. It can also be mistaken for a common raven. The eastern jungle crow and Indian jungle crow were once considered conspecific and together called the jungle crow.

Contents

Taxonomy

The large-billed crow was formally described in 1837 by the German naturalist Johann Georg Wagler under the current binomial name Corvus macrorhynchos. [2] The type locality is the island of Java. [3] The specific epithet macrorhynchos is from Ancient Greek μακρορρυγχος/makrorrhunkhos meaning "long-billed". [4]

The taxonomy has a long and complicated history, [5] and is still not fully resolved. [6] Early in the 20th century the large-billed crow was considered to be conspecific with the Australian raven (Corvus coronoides). [7] [8]

Ten subspecies are recognised. [6] Some are distinctive vocally, morphologically and genetically, leading to treatments that raise some of them into species status. [9] [10] [11]

Two of the above subspecies have sometimes been treated as separate species: C. m. levaillantii as the eastern jungle crow and C. m. culminatus as the Indian jungle crow. [12]

The Philippine jungle crow (Corvus philippinus) was former considered as a subspecies but is now treated as a distinct species: [6]

Description

Ssp. japonensis scavenging on a dead shark Raven scavenging on a dead shark.jpg
Ssp. japonensis scavenging on a dead shark

The large-billed crow is relatively large all-black covid. It is 46–59 cm (18–23 in) in length and 450–1,000 g (16–35 oz) in weight. It has a large black bill with an arched culmen. The base of the culmen is hidden by a layer of overlapping black rictal bristles . The glossy black plumage has a purple sheen. The bases of the neck feathers are pale grey. The throat has elongated hackle feathers. The irises are dark brown and the legs are black. The sexes are similar in plumage but the female, on average, is smaller than the male and has a less arched culmen. The juvenile has less glossy plumage and has smoky blue rather than brown irises. The subspecies differ in overall size, the bill size and the degree of gloss on the plumage. [13]

Distribution and habitat

A large-billed crow at Hokkaido, Japan Large Billed Crow In Japan.jpg
A large-billed crow at Hokkaido, Japan

The range of this species is extensive and stretches from the northeastern Asian seaboard to Afghanistan and eastern Iran in the west, through South and Southeast Asia, to the Lesser Sundas and Cambodia in the southeast. It occurs in woodland, parks and gardens, cultivated regions with at least some trees, but is a bird of more open country in the south of its range where it is not in competition with the common raven and carrion crow of the north.[ citation needed ]

Ecology and behaviour

Diet

Extremely versatile in its feeding, it will take food from the ground or in trees. They feed on a wide range of items and will attempt to feed on anything appearing edible, alive or dead, plant or animal. It is also one of the most persistent species and is quite bold, especially in urban areas. In Japan, crows are considered to be a pest, as they rip open garbage bags and take wire coat hangers for their nests. The Japanese subspecies of Large-billed crow are also known for their regular, unprovoked attacks on humans, especially when passing through near their nesting areas. In Sri Lanka, Karunarathna & Amarasinghe (2008) [14] noted that the jungle crow might actually be a, if not the, major predator of local small animals; jungle crows are highly experienced at catching lizards, taking only 45 minutes to find, catch and consume four critically endangered endemic lizards in Horton Plains National Park.

Hoarding behaviour has been noted in ssp. culminatus. [15] [16]

Breeding

Large-billed crow in Japan

The nest is a platform of twigs, usually high up on a tree with a preference for tall conifers like fir or pine. There are normally 3–5 eggs laid and they are incubated for 17–19 days. The young are fledged usually by about the 35th day. In India, the large-billed crow breed from March to May, but in the plains some of them start even in mid December. The nest is built in a fork of a tree, and is a shallow cup of sticks, sometimes neat and well made, sometimes sketchy and ragged; it is lined with grass roots, wool, rags, vegetable fibre, and similar materials. Some nests have been found to be built partly or exclusively of wire. [17]

Eggs, Museum de Toulouse Corvus macrorhynchos MHNT.ZOO.2010.11.170.6.jpg
Eggs, Muséum de Toulouse

The normal clutch consists of four or five eggs, and rarely six or seven. The egg is a broad oval, rather pointed at the smaller end. The texture is hard and fine and there is a fair gloss. The ground colour is any shade of blue-green, and is blotched, speckled and streaked with dull reddish-brown, pale sepia, grey and neutral tint. In size the eggs average about 1.45 by 1.05 inches. [17] The jungle crow can serve as a host for the Asian koel. [18]

Roosting

Gregarious at roosts with many thousands at some roost sites. Large flocks may be seen at dusk arriving at major roost sites. These roosts show no apparent reduction even during the breeding season, and this is because they do not breed during their first year. [17] During the day pairs may be involved in defending their territory but at night they may roost in large groups. They have linear dominance hierarchies that are remembered based on individual recognition. [19]

Voice

The voice is similar to the house crow to which it is closest, but deeper and usually more resonant and described as the usual loud "caa-haa-caa". However, it makes a range of calls, some which could be described as "cau cau" and others that could be mistaken for a woodpecker drumming.

Mortality factors

There are few predators of this species. Filarial parasites have been reported from this species. [20] Pathogenic viruses such as H5N1 have been noted to cause mortality in Japan. [21] Large scale deaths have also been noted to be caused by Clostridium infection and enteritis. [22]

References

  1. ↑ BirdLife International (2024). "Large-billed crow Corvus macrorhynchos". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2024 e.T103727590A264280673. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2024-2.RLTS.T103727590A264280673.en . Retrieved 19 December 2025.
  2. ↑ Wagler, Johann Georg (1827). Systema Avium (in Latin). Vol. pars 1. Stuttgart: sumtibus J.G. Cottae. p. 313 No. 3.
  3. ↑ Mayr, Ernst; Greenway, James C. Jr, eds. (1962). Check-List of Birds of the World. Vol. 15. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Museum of Comparative Zoology. p. 275.
  4. ↑ Jobling, James A. "macrorhynchos". The Key to Scientific Names. Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Retrieved 15 September 2024.
  5. ↑ Dickinson, E.C.; Eck, S.; Martens, J. (2004). "Systematic notes on Asian birds. 44. A preliminary review of the Corvidae". Zoologische Verhandelingen Leiden. 350: 85–109.
  6. 1 2 3 AviList Core Team (2025). "AviList: The Global Avian Checklist, v2025". doi: 10.2173/avilist.v2025 . Retrieved 13 December 2025.
  7. ↑ Stresemann, Erwin (1916). "Über die Formen der Gruppe Corvus coronoides Vig. & Horsf". Verhandlungen der Ornithologischen Gesellschaft in Bayern. 12: 277-304 [287].
  8. ↑ Meinertzhagen, R. (1926). "Introduction to a review of the genus Corvus". Novitates zoologicae. 33 (2): 57-121 [84].
  9. ↑ Madge, S. C. (2009). Large-billed Crow (Corvus macrorhynchos). pp. 631-632 in: del Hoyo, J., A. Elliott, & D. A. Christie. eds. (2009). Handbook of the Birds of the World. Bush-shrikes to Old World Sparrows. Barcelona: Lynx Edicions. ISBN   978-84-96553-50-7.
  10. ↑ Martens, J, Böhner, J & Hammerschmidt, K. (2000). Calls of the Jungle Crow (Corvus macrorhynchos s.l.) as a taxonomic character. J. Ornithol. 141:275-284.
  11. ↑ Nelson, Mike (May 17, 2013). "Vocal variation and future splits of the Large-billed Crow complex". Xeno-Canto. Retrieved August 13, 2015.
  12. ↑ Gill, Frank; Donsker, David; Rasmussen, Pamela, eds. (February 2025). "Crows, mudnesters, birds-of-paradise". IOC World Bird List Version 15.1. International Ornithologists' Union. Retrieved 13 December 2025.
  13. ↑ dos Anjos, L. (2009). "Family Corvidae (Crows)" . In del Hoyo, J.; Elliott, A.; Sargatal, J. (eds.). Handbook of the Birds of the World. Vol. 14: Bush-shrikes to Old World Sparrows. Barcelona, Spain: Lynx Edicions. pp. 494-640 [631]. ISBN   978-84-96553-50-7.
  14. ↑ Karunarathna, Amarasinghe (2008). Beobachtung einer Dickschnabelkrähe (Aves: Corvidae) beim Erbeuten von Ceylon-Taubagamen, Cophotis ceylanica (Reptilia: Agamidae), in Horton Plains Nationalpark auf Sri Lanka. Sauria 30(4):59-62.
  15. ↑ Natarajan, V. (1992). Food-storing behaviour of the Jungle Crow Corvus macrorhynchos Wagler J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. 89(3):375.
  16. ↑ Sharma, Satish Kumar (1995). Food storing behaviour of the Jungle Crow Corvus macrorhynchos Wagler. J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. 92(1):123.
  17. 1 2 3 Whistler, Hugh (1928). Popular Handbook of Indian Birds. Gurney and Jackson.
  18. ↑ Goodwin, Dereck (1986). Crows of the World (2nd ed.). London: The British Museum (Natural History). pp. 95–97. ISBN   0-565-00979-6.
  19. ↑ Izawa, Ei-Ichi & Shigeru Watanabe (2008). Formation of linear dominance relationship in captive jungle crows (Corvus macrorhynchos): Implications for individual recognition. Behavioural Processes 78:44–52.
  20. ↑ Chatterjee, R.K., Tandon, A., Saxena, K.C. (1978). Antigenic studies with Chandlerella hawkingi, the filarial parasite of Indian jungle crow, Corvus macrorhynchos. Indian Journal of Medical Research 67 (1):34-41.
  21. ↑ Tanimura, N., Tsukamoto, K., Okamatsu, M., Mase, M., Imada, T., Nakamura, K., Kubo, M., Yamaguchi, S., Irishio, W., Hayashi, M., Nakai, T., Yamauchi, A., Nishimura, M., Imai, K. (2004). Pathology of Fatal Highly Pathogenic H5N1 Avian Influenza Virus Infection in Large-billed Crows (Corvus macrorhynchos) during the 2004 Outbreak in Japan Vet. Pathol. 43:500-509.
  22. ↑ Asaoki, Yoshiji; Yanai, Tokuma; Hirayama, Haruko; Une, Yumi; Saito, Eriko; Sakai, Hiroki; Goryo, Masanobu; Fukushi, Hideto; and Masegi, Toshiaki (2004). Fatal necrotic enteritis associated with Clostridium perfringens in wild crows (Corvus macrorhynchos). Avian Pathology 33(1):19-24.
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