Carrion Crow

Carrion Crow (Corvus corone) is a sturdy all-black crow with a straighter, less massive bill than the large-billed crow and a squared or gently rounded tail. Body shape, bill structure, plumage pattern and voice provide the strongest field characters. Age, sex and season may alter its appearance, so identification should combine several features and careful direct field comparisons with similar species in the same habitat (Wikipedia, general species account).

It occupies farmland, coasts, woods and cities across Eurasia, feeding opportunistically on invertebrates, grain, small animals, carrion and refuse and building a substantial stick nest in trees. Its movements and social behaviour vary through the year, with breeding birds generally more dispersed and non-breeding birds gathering where food is concentrated. Japanese records place it within the country's documented avifauna as a resident, migrant or visitor (Wikipedia, general species account; Wildlife of Japan occurrence records).