Crow update, Edgar, Blanche and Blackie

Yesterday I released the two wild crows.  They had been here a week, had had long vocal discussions with the local crows and were flying as well as they could in a limited aviary.  Opened the door and Blackie flew out straight away.  He flew heavily but competently and didn't stop until he'd made a tree across the creek.  Whitie however snagged at the door.  I'd pushed the door open as wide as it would go but he still got stuck behind the door.  I went to the front of the aviary to herd him out of the dead end he'd got himself into.  By the time he was clear he couldn't fly.  He got to the garden around the deck and lost momentum.  I caught him again and put him back in the aviary where he seems to fly quite well from one end to the other. 

Nevertheless I'll hang onto him for another week as Edgar has graduated from the spare room to being Whitie's (should rename him/her Blanche) roommate.  Much better for him to be out in the world with lots to interest him while still having the protection of the cubby built into the aviary.  I'd put him in a cocky cage the day before as he'd discovered he didn't have to stay in the container.  Life was much more interesting from atop the stored boxes.  That was fine except for the copious amounts of poop Edgar generates.  The cocky cage was a short term solution.  Poor guy, he sat in one spot on one perch for 24 hours.  Not scared, just not knowing how to get around and onto the other perches.  In the aviary he soon worked out how he could climb along the branches to get from one end to the other.  I put gum tree limbs from the ground to the perches in case he falls so he can climb up again.  He's old enough now to start tackling some of the physical aspects of a crow's life.  Flying is another matter entirely but one step or crow hop at a time.

Seeing the two crows together, despite the difference in age, they appear quite different.  Edgar's head shape is rounder and fuller than Blanche's head.  Whether it's baby fluff I don't know.  His eyes seem smaller too.  Blanche's eyes are paler while Edgar's are definitely blue.  Of course the white feathers of Blanche throw off identification as well.  Looked up crows and ravens in the bird book today and don't know whether they are Australian Ravens or Torresian crows.  The immature descriptions aren't much help - and they all seem to be distantly related anyway.