Aggressive crows seen around Ballard

Danielle Anthony-Goodwin Ballard

file_crowIt’s that time of year again where Ballard crows become loud and territorial.

My Ballard reader Alyssa emailed in to report that she was dive bombed and attacked by an aggressive crow this morning on 64th and 20th.

“I searched for crows dive bombing in Ballard and found a post from a few years ago. It might be good to call out the aggressive crows again or warn people on that corner because it was pretty terrifying,” writes Alyssa.

The post from 2010 mentioned an incident on 32nd and 62nd where a crow attacked a My Ballard reader, scratching his head and drawing blood.

Make sure to be aware of these territorial Ballard birds when walking around the neighborhood this Spring.

40 thoughts to “Aggressive crows seen around Ballard”

  4. They were terrorizing our kids in the lawn so I shot one dead with a pellet gun and put an orange cone out at the same time. Anytime I put the orange cone out they leave us alone.

  5. I have had crows raise a nestling that fell out of the nest in my yard. They are very smart. As long as I didn’t look at the baby I could walk in and out and even do weeding in the yard without being bothered. I could even walk my dog by on leash.

  6. as gracie said they are protecting/protective of their babies/fledglings.
    i hope noone else takes deadly action against the protective parents.
    if we were able to shoot every human parent being who was being obnoxious about their babies/young kids there would be a lot more single-parent families/orlhans out there.

    this is a small amount of time in the year – we need to understand how other species protect their young just as we do – there are simple NON-LETHAL MEANS – use an umbrella to walk between home and car, encourage kids to play in another yard/park for a week, etc. there’s a good site i will try to find and post later.

  8. Glad to see this posted – i live on the corner where this is happening – for the last four years in the spring. He only goes after certain people – not sure what the criteria is as have also left food out. He comes after me every morning/evening to my car, – dive bombs the car as well to the corner of 65th/20th..4x time this morning. Yes, there is a nest in the hedge. In previous years it only lasted 2.5 weeks. It is an awful primal, chilling fear when this happens. Yes, boxes, umbrellas work only to protect oneself, and neighbor guys throw invisible stones as well. On year a neighbor shook the hedge so the nest fell out – the next year they roosted somewhere else. Lets see how long it lasts this year…

  11. Well, they are protected, but Skipspence is right:

    RCW 77.36.030
    Trapping or killing wildlife threatening human safety or causing property damage — Limitations and conditions — Rules.

    (1) Subject to limitations and conditions established by the commission, the owner, the owner’s immediate family member, the owner’s documented employee, or a tenant of real property may trap, consistent with RCW 77.15.194, or kill wildlife that is threatening human safety or causing property damage on that property, without the licenses required under RCW 77.32.010 or authorization from the director under RCW 77.12.240.

    (2) The commission shall establish the limitations and conditions of this section by rule. The rules must include:

    (a) Appropriate protection for threatened or endangered species;

    (b) Instances when verbal or written permission is required to kill wildlife;

    (c) Species that may be killed under this section; and

    (d) Requirements for the disposal of wildlife trapped or killed under this section.

    (3) In establishing the limitations and conditions of this section, the commission shall take into consideration the recommendations of the Washington state wolf conservation and management plan.

    [2009 c 333 § 61; 1996 c 54 § 4.]

    Notes:
    Effective date — Application — 2009 c 333 §§ 53-66: See notes following RCW 77.36.010.

  12. Skipspence and Bob both need to get a little more educated.

    First of all, yes, they are protected (not “protective species” as Skipspence notes, though actually they are being protective of their nests and babies). Not in the sense of being an endangered species. But all native bird species are protected by migratory bird acts and the like, simply because they need to be protected from random acts of wanton shooting by people such as Bob.

    And nest collectors and egg collectors and people who shake nests out of trees, like Pixie Girl’s neighbor.

    Yeah, yeah, someone’s going to cleverly pipe up and say “well I am protecting my children/my car/my head” etc. Well, OK, but guess what. You are a human and you can withstand a few days or a week or two going out with an umbrella or waving a stick above your head. The crow, though intelligent, is still acting largely on instinct to protect its nestlings from predators.

    I have had a crow like this in my yard every spring. It goes on for a scant two weeks. It gives us a funny story to tell later. We all survive. BIG DEAL. Roll with the punches and stop being all “oooh my property” about it. Your kids aren’t going to get their eyes pecked out. And crows don’t know about property boundaries.

  14. +1 Seattleslew. And it is still against the law to discharge a firearm in the City of Seattle.
    And I hardly see a crow divebombing you to protect babaies is a threat to your life..an annoyance maybe. But they don’t land on you and peck out your eyes for crying outloud.
    And SunsetHill – yep, Bob has confessed to a crime.

  16. I’m with Bob. I had one that was just horrible. It was terrorizing my cat really really badly, pecking it on the head, drawing blood and a vet trip. It later attacked me, so it saw the pellet gun.

  17. I’m with Bob too. Honestly, there is no shortage of crows in Seattle. They are like rats with wings. A few less of them is really no big deal.

  19. Another nod to Bob. We had a crow after a nest of baby birds on our property a few years ago and killed it with one shot from a BB gun. I admit it was a bit disturbing but less so than watching it fly off with a chick in its mouth (saw that once, it was horrible)

  23. I was attacked by one on 1st and Pine last week. No blood was drawn and I did not shoot him but it did scare the heck out of me!

  24. “i look forward to the day when i can shoot some crow-killer’s animal that dares to infringe on my cats’ territory.”

    I look forward to the day when I can shoot stray cats on my property that tear up my garden and use it for a toilet. Honestly, every time I see a “missing cat” post on this site, I get a little happy that maybe there is one less free-roaming, bird-killing, rat-like creature in my neighborhood.
    Also, when I see those “missing cat” posts, I’m tempted to call animal control. Let them round up these ‘outdoor’ pets and euthanize them for the good of our society.

  26. so some of you are actually “terrified” by these crow attacks?

    people just love to make a huge deal of every little thing these days…

  27. @ballardmike,
    No, the homeless don’t bother me nearly as much as cats. It’s only them and dopey owners that let them outside that deserve to no longer own pets.
    I absolutely hate cats and will do whatever I can to keep the little monsters out of my yard.

  31. hey bob just figured out who you are, I’ve seen the orange cone out there.

    I have notified Animal Control, they are coming out to investigate your illegal actions.

  32. ” every time I see a “missing cat” post on this site, I get a little happy”

    Probably why they come over to s**t in your garden. Cats are smart like that.

  33. “Cats are smart like that.”
    I don’t doubt you Sam.
    It’s usually the dumbass cat owners that let them outside who are to blame.
    I’d like to take a dump in each of their yards.

  35. Phoebe, I hope you realize that some of the cats on those missing posters are indoor cats who may have escaped when someone entered or exited a home, or while pet sitters did. Many of those don’t crap in your garden or kill the birds.
    Wishing them harm is just evil. Did you know there are many studies that link animal cruelty to the abuse and murdering of people?

  37. As I was leaving my apartment this morning in Edmonds, I was attacked out of the blue. As soon as the crow saw me, started squawking really loud and before long two crows were alternating dive bombing me, as I had done nothing to provoke this attack. As my car was parked a block or so away, I was running like a mad man trying to reach safety and protection. People who saw me must have thought I was on something. Very scary experience. Not sure what to expect when I arrive home.

  38. For many years I’ve had this quirky affinity for crows, like my totem animals, feeling a bit foolish but nevertheless have paid attention to when a crow crosses my direct path, say when I’m driving or walking, I note what I’m thinking at the time and see it in a different light, like it may be important, or a truth. OK, this morning I walked out of my apartment on 17th and Market across from 7-11. Crows were flying around, nothing unusual. I had this great idea about something I’ve been trying to figure out in my work. Suddenly a crow is walking dead ahead of me on the sidewalk. I was kind of pleased and just stopped for a moment to feel it, to feel “linked to the natural world” and realizing that my old quirky totem idea may actually have some merit. I had another “aha” in my unfolding idea and started walking on. That’s when the crow started diving at me and grabbing my hair. Then another hit and I had to run, swinging my shopping bag over my head as they ciricled. I didn’t know whether it was a positive or negative experience, freaky but also kind of whooooo..

  39. One just dive-bombed me twice on my walk to lunch, a block East from Swedish Hospital.

    I laughed.

    PS. the wind off Ballard smells like hot garbage.

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