Nebelkrähe St. Gallen

The hooded crow inhabits mainly open and semi-open cultural landscapes, agricultural fields with hedges and groups of trees, forest edges, river meadows and, increasingly, parks, cemeteries and the outskirts of villages and towns. In Germany its main range lies east of the Elbe; west of that boundary it is replaced by the carrion crow. The species is a resident bird that stays in its territory year-round, although larger communal roosts can form outside the breeding season.

Genetically, the hooded crow is very close to the carrion crow (Corvus corone). Whole-genome studies show that the two forms differ only in a small number of genomic regions that essentially govern plumage coloration. Where the ranges meet, for example along the Elbe in Germany, a narrow but stable hybrid zone arises in which both parent forms and fertile hybrids occur together. For this reason, parts of the scientific community treat hooded and carrion crow as subspecies of a single species. Behaviourally the two forms are very similar: hooded crows form lifelong pair bonds, defend a territory during the breeding season, breed once per year and typically lay four to six eggs in a high stick nest. Outside the breeding season they appear in pairs or family groups.

As a marked omnivore, the hooded crow uses insects, earthworms, small vertebrates, carrion, seeds, berries and human food waste. In spring and early summer it additionally takes eggs and nestlings, and can in this way put pressure on ground-nesting birds and young small game. Against this background it is hunted in several federal states where it is subject to hunting law, as part of small-game management (Niederwild-Hege) aimed at reducing predation pressure on species such as lapwing, grey partridge and brown hare. The Deutsche Jagdverband recommends decoy hunting from a Krähenhütte (crow hide) with decoys and mouth callers as the main practical method; electronic calling devices are not permitted. Binding hunting seasons and permissible methods depend on the respective state hunting law and should always be checked before any outing.