Community Magazine March 2019

86 Community Magazine Exploring the Mysteries of the Animal Kingdom Torah Just as we can learn from the positive qualities of an animal, we can also learn from observing an animal’s negative character traits. The first time the raven is mentioned in the Torah is with Noach in the tevah . Forty days after the waters of the Mabul had subsided enough for the mountaintops to be visible, Noach opened the Teamwork Ravens are cooperative hunters that often work in pairs: one raven distracts a nesting bird, and the other snatches the bird’s egg. What Is the Most Intelligent Bird Species? This might come as quite a surprise to some people, but many scientists think that corvids, the family of birds that includes crows, ravens, rooks, magpies, and jays, are not only the most intelligent birds, but perhaps the smartest animals on earth! According to various tests and experiments, crows, followed by ravens, are arguably the most intelligent birds of all. This intelligence rating is based on their problem-solving skills, as well as their ability to make tools for themselves, to remember human faces, and to consider future events when making decisions. One experiment involved a wild crow which had learned to use individual props during three months of captivity. The crow successfully managed to work out the order in which to use them to complete an eight-stage puzzle in less than three minutes! But you do not need to be a scientist to witness the intelligence of crows. Their ingenuity can be seen by observing them in their natural environments. For example, in the Pacific Islands, New Caledonian crows can be seen fashioning tools, such as prodding sticks and hooks, which they use to take out insects from logs and branches. In Japan, carrion crows drop hard-to-crush nuts on the roadway at intersections so that moving traffic will break them open. And in Israel, hooded crows actually use bread crumbs to catch fish! Crow