Tests have revealed that we cannot tell individual crows apart, but
crows are very good at recognizing individual human faces. They
remember, for example, the faces of those who had captured and banded
them, or took a shot at them, and teach other crows to caw in apparent
disapproval when they see them; this dislike is passed on to subsequent
generations, apparently. Scientists have tested crows by making masks of
these disliked humans, which the crows are able also to recognize when
others wear them. To make sure they didn't just react to any mask, they
employed Dick Cheney masks, which aroused only comparatively mild
reactions. To further test their abilities to recognize us, they wore
the masks of their oppressors upside-down; the crows, suspicious, turned
their own heads upside down, recognized them, and proceeded to berate
the wearers.
        The scientists suppose this is an adaptation to the birds' decidedly
ambiguous relationship with our species: in any given territory, some
humans love crows, feeding and protecting them, and others just as
routinely shoot them. So crows able to recognize human faces have a
pronounced advantage--evolution in action. I just heard all this on
National Public Radio, and apparently they have some more information,
and a quiz to allow you to see if you can recognize crow faces, at
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=106826971
Bill Whan
Columbus

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