What to Consider Before Attracting Crows to Control Pests in Your Garden

Crows have a very diverse diet. They are known to snack on everything from corn and pecans to watermelon and turtles. For this reason, hummingbirds are also a plausible snack for them and may end up on their menu. However, this does not mean that the crow will eat the first hummingbird that dares to enter your yard. In fact, hummingbird bones are only found in a small percentage of necropsied crows, indicating that the birds are not their first choice for a meal. Instead, they usually gravitate toward hummingbird eggs rather than adult birds, but the fact remains that small hummingbirds will be vulnerable prey if you invite crows into your yard.

Although hummingbirds are not their first choice, birders have seen crows attack these small birds at hummingbird feeders. For this reason, if you would rather not have them injured or chased away, it is best to find another way to reduce your pest population. If you have already attracted them and want to find a way to keep them away from your garden, there are some precautions you can take. You can hang a stuffed bird that looks like a dead crow next to the feeder, which will keep it away. They also tend to avoid reflective strips, so you can hang them around the charger. You can also play a recording of upset crows calling to show them that this is not a safe area.