Crows vs. Cat vs. Cat Fight
November 27, 2010 8:38 AM Subscribe
Totally bizarre as I was just watching this on another site. I watched until the cats started fighting. Also, if no birds get eaten I'm not sure what the hell the cat was thinking.
posted by cjorgensen at 8:44 AM on November 27, 2010
posted by cjorgensen at 8:44 AM on November 27, 2010
I don't know if the cats had a beef before the birds showed up, but it looks like some of my days. I'm pecked at and pecked at and pecked at until I go and attack someone else who hasn't been doing anything at all to me.
posted by xingcat at 8:45 AM on November 27, 2010 [6 favorites]
posted by xingcat at 8:45 AM on November 27, 2010 [6 favorites]
That's just wild. You should have tagged that "soundtrack". What a fantastic choice of background music.
(reminds me of the time when the cats and the magpies had a 2-day battle after a cat stupidly killed a young magpie. Trenches, plans of battle, silence before the storm, air defense tactics, it was all there. I forget who won.
Birds of the crow family are smart, and they hate cats.)
posted by Namlit at 8:50 AM on November 27, 2010 [1 favorite]
(reminds me of the time when the cats and the magpies had a 2-day battle after a cat stupidly killed a young magpie. Trenches, plans of battle, silence before the storm, air defense tactics, it was all there. I forget who won.
Birds of the crow family are smart, and they hate cats.)
posted by Namlit at 8:50 AM on November 27, 2010 [1 favorite]
I thought this whole scene was taking place on a rooftop, somehow, and was rather disappointed when they just battled off into some grass. Still, love the Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon-esque background music. The whole thing reminds me of one of the "Peter Fights the Giant Chicken at Great Length and for No Reason" sequences from Family Guy.
posted by Gator at 8:51 AM on November 27, 2010 [1 favorite]
posted by Gator at 8:51 AM on November 27, 2010 [1 favorite]
The music is from the Predator soundtrack.
posted by empath at 8:58 AM on November 27, 2010 [1 favorite]
posted by empath at 8:58 AM on November 27, 2010 [1 favorite]
White Cat: what the fuck? Bird? Fuck off, hey stop it, fucking bird, look how fucking angry I am you little-
Black Cat: Hey! You swishing at me cat? you swishing that fucking tail at me?!
White Cat: YES! god I hate you!
Black Cat: Fiiiiiiiiight!
( previously)
Crow one: I'm bored.
Crow two: Wanna see a neat trick?
posted by The Whelk at 9:04 AM on November 27, 2010 [25 favorites]
Black Cat: Hey! You swishing at me cat? you swishing that fucking tail at me?!
White Cat: YES! god I hate you!
Black Cat: Fiiiiiiiiight!
( previously)
Crow one: I'm bored.
Crow two: Wanna see a neat trick?
posted by The Whelk at 9:04 AM on November 27, 2010 [25 favorites]
It looked like the crows had some kind of territory sharing agreement with the black cat and the white cat was an interloper. I didn't enjoy it because the white cat looked too much like a cat I used to have.
posted by bonobothegreat at 9:17 AM on November 27, 2010
posted by bonobothegreat at 9:17 AM on November 27, 2010
The music is from the Predator soundtrack.
I'm just wondering, how come the music is so uncannily well-timed? This is like a choreographed version, but backwards, sorta.
Hah those crows are like Gollum. They want their cat raw and wriggling.
posted by Namlit at 9:19 AM on November 27, 2010 [1 favorite]
I'm just wondering, how come the music is so uncannily well-timed? This is like a choreographed version, but backwards, sorta.
Hah those crows are like Gollum. They want their cat raw and wriggling.
posted by Namlit at 9:19 AM on November 27, 2010 [1 favorite]
Proof once again that of the thirty-six stratagems, legging it always best (especially when black team has you three to one).
posted by Abiezer at 9:19 AM on November 27, 2010
posted by Abiezer at 9:19 AM on November 27, 2010
Alright, who smeared Patches' tail with bacon grease?
posted by Ahab at 9:21 AM on November 27, 2010 [1 favorite]
posted by Ahab at 9:21 AM on November 27, 2010 [1 favorite]
I think the cats were fighting and the crows broke it up right before the video started. My wife, who hates all birds with a blinding passion, thinks the birds just attacked the two poor defenseless cats and somehow made them fight.
Goes to show how one's preconceived notions are reflected in the interpretation of a situation.
posted by ChrisHartley at 9:23 AM on November 27, 2010 [3 favorites]
Goes to show how one's preconceived notions are reflected in the interpretation of a situation.
posted by ChrisHartley at 9:23 AM on November 27, 2010 [3 favorites]
Any bird that close to the most cats I've known would be hanging limply from feline jaws very very quickly.
posted by longsleeves at 9:26 AM on November 27, 2010
posted by longsleeves at 9:26 AM on November 27, 2010
Obviously, the crows were forcing these two cats to fight to the death, or else the crow gang would destroy them both. Probably a crow behind the camera as well.
posted by orme at 9:26 AM on November 27, 2010 [9 favorites]
posted by orme at 9:26 AM on November 27, 2010 [9 favorites]
As far as I can figure out the black cat is working with the crows.
He was left alone as a tiny kitten when the foreclosed house his family was squatting in was bulldozed. The mother crow spotted the pathetic mewling creature and somehow she thought the tiny bawling kitten was a crow chick. Over the next few months the mother crow fed the now growing black cat, spending 23 hours a day searching for grubs and beetles to regurgitate into the now almost fully grown black cat's mouth. One day, after snatching a few moments of respite, she awoke to find nothing but her strange child, piles of feathers, and crow entrails in her nest. It was clear to the rest of the animals in the parking lot that the strange large furry crow had eaten the others, and he should be cast out of the nest but the mother crow loved her strange furry baby so much that she couldn't do it.
The other crow is the mother crow's new boyfriend Paul. He comes over sometimes for sleepovers and smells funny. He also has a scratchy face so when he hugs the black cat it tickles the black cat's face.
I'm convoked the other cat is the black cat's biological father but there is no way to tell without a DNA test.
posted by Ad hominem at 9:30 AM on November 27, 2010 [7 favorites]
He was left alone as a tiny kitten when the foreclosed house his family was squatting in was bulldozed. The mother crow spotted the pathetic mewling creature and somehow she thought the tiny bawling kitten was a crow chick. Over the next few months the mother crow fed the now growing black cat, spending 23 hours a day searching for grubs and beetles to regurgitate into the now almost fully grown black cat's mouth. One day, after snatching a few moments of respite, she awoke to find nothing but her strange child, piles of feathers, and crow entrails in her nest. It was clear to the rest of the animals in the parking lot that the strange large furry crow had eaten the others, and he should be cast out of the nest but the mother crow loved her strange furry baby so much that she couldn't do it.
The other crow is the mother crow's new boyfriend Paul. He comes over sometimes for sleepovers and smells funny. He also has a scratchy face so when he hugs the black cat it tickles the black cat's face.
I'm convoked the other cat is the black cat's biological father but there is no way to tell without a DNA test.
posted by Ad hominem at 9:30 AM on November 27, 2010 [7 favorites]
Huh convoked? How did my iPad come up with that word.
posted by Ad hominem at 9:31 AM on November 27, 2010 [4 favorites]
posted by Ad hominem at 9:31 AM on November 27, 2010 [4 favorites]
Obviously, the crows were forcing these two cats to fight to the death
Holy crap, you're right! They're re-enacting Plato's Stepchildren, complete with controversial white-on-black smoochies!
posted by Gator at 9:31 AM on November 27, 2010
Holy crap, you're right! They're re-enacting Plato's Stepchildren, complete with controversial white-on-black smoochies!
posted by Gator at 9:31 AM on November 27, 2010
Crows vs. Cat vs. Cat Fight
I saw this title and at first thought it was going to be a recipe.
posted by mmrtnt at 9:33 AM on November 27, 2010
I saw this title and at first thought it was going to be a recipe.
posted by mmrtnt at 9:33 AM on November 27, 2010
Bets have been laid.
posted by Evangeline at 9:35 AM on November 27, 2010
posted by Evangeline at 9:35 AM on November 27, 2010
Where are the Chicken Police when you need them?
posted by Devils Rancher at 9:41 AM on November 27, 2010 [3 favorites]
posted by Devils Rancher at 9:41 AM on November 27, 2010 [3 favorites]
Birds of the crow family are smart, and they hate cats.
I remember reading in a link that was probably posted here on MeFi that there's one professor that's absolutely hated by every corvid on his entire campus. Apparently, he was doing some kind of sampling or measurement of their nests, and had to mess with their fledglings. He didn't hurt any of them, but apparently scared the hell out of the parents.
Even now, years and years later, whenever he leaves his office, they all start squawking at him, and I guess being a bit aggressive, but I don't remember the details. And this is true of ALL of them, not just the ones he sampled -- they've communicated amongst themselves that he's a Bad Human.
It's so annoying that, in later years, he's encouraged his students to wear masks when doing the sampling, so they don't get harassed for the remainder of their student career.
They are smart enough, in other words, to recognize individual human faces, and to pass warnings along to their cohorts.
Then, when you see that David Attenborough bit about the crows in Japan that are smart enough to drop nuts into traffic so that the cars crack them, and then wait patiently at the light for the walk sign before going to fetch their meal, well.... there are children that aren't that smart.
posted by Malor at 9:42 AM on November 27, 2010 [33 favorites]
I remember reading in a link that was probably posted here on MeFi that there's one professor that's absolutely hated by every corvid on his entire campus. Apparently, he was doing some kind of sampling or measurement of their nests, and had to mess with their fledglings. He didn't hurt any of them, but apparently scared the hell out of the parents.
Even now, years and years later, whenever he leaves his office, they all start squawking at him, and I guess being a bit aggressive, but I don't remember the details. And this is true of ALL of them, not just the ones he sampled -- they've communicated amongst themselves that he's a Bad Human.
It's so annoying that, in later years, he's encouraged his students to wear masks when doing the sampling, so they don't get harassed for the remainder of their student career.
They are smart enough, in other words, to recognize individual human faces, and to pass warnings along to their cohorts.
Then, when you see that David Attenborough bit about the crows in Japan that are smart enough to drop nuts into traffic so that the cars crack them, and then wait patiently at the light for the walk sign before going to fetch their meal, well.... there are children that aren't that smart.
posted by Malor at 9:42 AM on November 27, 2010 [33 favorites]
It did seem like the crows were picking on the white-and-brown cat more than the black cat, even after the fight started. Interesting.
posted by Johnny Assay at 9:43 AM on November 27, 2010
posted by Johnny Assay at 9:43 AM on November 27, 2010
I mean, that just boggles my mind -- birds so intelligent that it's a good idea to disguise yourself before messing with them.
posted by Malor at 9:44 AM on November 27, 2010 [3 favorites]
posted by Malor at 9:44 AM on November 27, 2010 [3 favorites]
Ten Points for Ravenclaw!!
posted by Trochanter at 9:49 AM on November 27, 2010 [6 favorites]
posted by Trochanter at 9:49 AM on November 27, 2010 [6 favorites]
there's one professor that's absolutely hated by every corvid on his entire campus
Reminds me of this experiment.
posted by Dumsnill at 9:51 AM on November 27, 2010
Reminds me of this experiment.
posted by Dumsnill at 9:51 AM on November 27, 2010
Cat fights are vicious. I never realised how vicious.
Now I know what to picture when I hear Katzenjammer coming from the yard at night.
posted by joost de vries at 9:52 AM on November 27, 2010 [1 favorite]
Now I know what to picture when I hear Katzenjammer coming from the yard at night.
posted by joost de vries at 9:52 AM on November 27, 2010 [1 favorite]
They don't only recognize professors and cats, but even themselves (might have been on MeFi before, I don't recall where I found this.)
posted by Namlit at 9:54 AM on November 27, 2010 [1 favorite]
posted by Namlit at 9:54 AM on November 27, 2010 [1 favorite]
The soundtrack is obviously the most interesting question here. If there was *one* moment where it synced up perfectly, that would make sense. But there seem to be several, which means either the music is origional, or someone remixed it to match.
Also, anyone know who the original uploader was? I've seen a ton of different copies on youtube (just look at 'related videos') all over the place.
posted by delmoi at 10:00 AM on November 27, 2010 [3 favorites]
Also, anyone know who the original uploader was? I've seen a ton of different copies on youtube (just look at 'related videos') all over the place.
posted by delmoi at 10:00 AM on November 27, 2010 [3 favorites]
Someone should make a video game out of this.
posted by WalkingAround at 10:04 AM on November 27, 2010
posted by WalkingAround at 10:04 AM on November 27, 2010
I'm almost certain it has to be a remix/editing job too because there are just way too many parts where it syncs up. But that is a REALLY well done editing job because the transitions are totally seamless and natural.
posted by naju at 10:07 AM on November 27, 2010 [2 favorites]
posted by naju at 10:07 AM on November 27, 2010 [2 favorites]
Great video. And our cats occasionally turn on each other when they're upset by animal activity in their territory (usually another cat), so the cat angle makes sense to me. What the crows are up to, god knows, but I don't want them on my case.
posted by languagehat at 10:13 AM on November 27, 2010
posted by languagehat at 10:13 AM on November 27, 2010
When the camera moved and you could see the windowpane I knew without a doubt this trailer was bootlegged.
posted by Deflagro at 10:25 AM on November 27, 2010 [4 favorites]
posted by Deflagro at 10:25 AM on November 27, 2010 [4 favorites]
delmoi, original upload is here.
posted by nooneyouknow at 10:26 AM on November 27, 2010 [1 favorite]
posted by nooneyouknow at 10:26 AM on November 27, 2010 [1 favorite]
Don't fuck with black cats. Particularly black cats with wingmen.
posted by Nelson at 10:35 AM on November 27, 2010 [3 favorites]
posted by Nelson at 10:35 AM on November 27, 2010 [3 favorites]
I think the black cat was working in tandem with birds to egg on the white cat. They planned to kill the white cat and eat it.
posted by parmanparman at 10:56 AM on November 27, 2010
posted by parmanparman at 10:56 AM on November 27, 2010
According to the Bernstein version the music is Predator 2 soundtrack.
posted by victors at 11:06 AM on November 27, 2010
posted by victors at 11:06 AM on November 27, 2010
Oh, as to why the crows are so agressive. Crows will attack anything that comes near the nest. Including people.
posted by Ad hominem at 11:30 AM on November 27, 2010
posted by Ad hominem at 11:30 AM on November 27, 2010
They're re-enacting Plato's Stepchildren...
Amok Time Crows vs. Cat vs. Cat.
posted by steef at 11:51 AM on November 27, 2010 [2 favorites]
Amok Time Crows vs. Cat vs. Cat.
posted by steef at 11:51 AM on November 27, 2010 [2 favorites]
there's a blue jay who nests in the tree across the street from my house. i leave out dry food for the outside kitties, and the jay sits on the porch railing, looking around, and when convinced nothing will bother it, swoops down & grabs some kibble & flies back up to the nest. absolutely terrorizes the cats when they're around. she'll chase the kitties off the porch, and if they're outside the gate will dive bomb them mercilessly. they just crouch while the jay is bombing. when the jay retreats, they slouch a foot or so until the next onslaught begins.
i watch all this thinking, 'hey now! you're a cat. that thing making your life miserable is a bird. you, cat, are supposed to be winning this battle!'
then i just give up, grab my squirt bottle, and play cat escort.
it's an enigma.
posted by msconduct at 11:57 AM on November 27, 2010 [1 favorite]
i watch all this thinking, 'hey now! you're a cat. that thing making your life miserable is a bird. you, cat, are supposed to be winning this battle!'
then i just give up, grab my squirt bottle, and play cat escort.
it's an enigma.
posted by msconduct at 11:57 AM on November 27, 2010 [1 favorite]
I love this. really waited for them both to take it to the crows, but they just kept fighting each other.
is this an analogy for u.s. v. global politics?
posted by ClassyHands at 12:16 PM on November 27, 2010 [1 favorite]
is this an analogy for u.s. v. global politics?
posted by ClassyHands at 12:16 PM on November 27, 2010 [1 favorite]
Regarding the linking of the soundtrack to the video: it's your brain's fault.
I remember making a short in college and trying a dozen different pieces of classical music as soundtracks, and almost all of them matched the visuals in uncannily precise ways.
posted by kozad at 12:16 PM on November 27, 2010 [3 favorites]
I remember making a short in college and trying a dozen different pieces of classical music as soundtracks, and almost all of them matched the visuals in uncannily precise ways.
posted by kozad at 12:16 PM on November 27, 2010 [3 favorites]
Birds of the crow family are smart
You're not wrong. During a recent trip to the Rockies, a colleague of mine (local to the area) pointed out a nearby raven watching us. He told me that it was one of a mated pair he was familiar with and that if you were to set a backpack on the ground and walk away, within fifteen seconds one or the other would come down and unzip it to check for food inside. He had once seen one of them find food and try to depart with the pack, but discovering it was too heavy, the bird took off and retrieved the other raven; they then each grabbed a handle* and left with the pack.
He also mentioned that when they get hungry enough they will go look for an animal on its own -- a deer or something -- and then take off to look for a predator species (say, a wolf or coyote). The ravens will then taunt and annoy the predator to the point the predator pursues them, at which time they lead it back to the prey.
These birds have schemes and plans.
*Somewhat in the manner of two swallows with a coconut.
posted by ricochet biscuit at 12:30 PM on November 27, 2010 [50 favorites]
You're not wrong. During a recent trip to the Rockies, a colleague of mine (local to the area) pointed out a nearby raven watching us. He told me that it was one of a mated pair he was familiar with and that if you were to set a backpack on the ground and walk away, within fifteen seconds one or the other would come down and unzip it to check for food inside. He had once seen one of them find food and try to depart with the pack, but discovering it was too heavy, the bird took off and retrieved the other raven; they then each grabbed a handle* and left with the pack.
He also mentioned that when they get hungry enough they will go look for an animal on its own -- a deer or something -- and then take off to look for a predator species (say, a wolf or coyote). The ravens will then taunt and annoy the predator to the point the predator pursues them, at which time they lead it back to the prey.
These birds have schemes and plans.
*Somewhat in the manner of two swallows with a coconut.
posted by ricochet biscuit at 12:30 PM on November 27, 2010 [50 favorites]
crow:Dude, that black looking cat over there says your mom's got more toms than Neil Pert.
posted by Trochanter at 12:32 PM on November 27, 2010 [2 favorites]
posted by Trochanter at 12:32 PM on November 27, 2010 [2 favorites]
msconduct 'hey now! you're a cat. that thing making your life miserable is a bird. you, cat, are supposed to be winning this battle!'
Cats can fight above their weight too.
posted by aeschenkarnos at 12:33 PM on November 27, 2010 [1 favorite]
Cats can fight above their weight too.
posted by aeschenkarnos at 12:33 PM on November 27, 2010 [1 favorite]
I sort of see the crows as the media here, particularly cable news. Particularly Fox.
posted by George_Spiggott at 12:43 PM on November 27, 2010 [1 favorite]
posted by George_Spiggott at 12:43 PM on November 27, 2010 [1 favorite]
Thing is, a cat's jaws are really tiny. It isn't actually capable of getting in a killing bite on a crow's neck unless it's really lucky. And the crow is capable of laying a serious hurting on the cat if it wants to, between pecks with that huge sharp beak and battering with wings. As long as the crow is aware of the cat and not being stupid, it pretty much has nothing to fear from it.
We have mallards that hang around in our yard, and there's a cat in the neighborhood who occasionally pays attention to them. Especially during duckling season, because a cat can kill a duckling. But I've never seen a cat get a duckling, because the hen will take off after the cat any time it looks too aggressive, and when that happens the cat retreats immediately.
Cats are really dangerous against rodents and small birds, but big birds have little to fear from them. (Dogs are a different matter. Dogs have much larger and stronger jaws, and even a little dog is easily capable of killing a crow or a duck.)
So I really wasn't too surprised that the crows were so aggressive against that white cat. What I don't understand is why they were ignoring the other one.
posted by Chocolate Pickle at 1:22 PM on November 27, 2010
We have mallards that hang around in our yard, and there's a cat in the neighborhood who occasionally pays attention to them. Especially during duckling season, because a cat can kill a duckling. But I've never seen a cat get a duckling, because the hen will take off after the cat any time it looks too aggressive, and when that happens the cat retreats immediately.
Cats are really dangerous against rodents and small birds, but big birds have little to fear from them. (Dogs are a different matter. Dogs have much larger and stronger jaws, and even a little dog is easily capable of killing a crow or a duck.)
So I really wasn't too surprised that the crows were so aggressive against that white cat. What I don't understand is why they were ignoring the other one.
posted by Chocolate Pickle at 1:22 PM on November 27, 2010
Black cats, white cats? I see this for what it is: an analogy for race relations in America! We are being subverted by powers greater than us! Black, white, cats it don't matter none: we gotta work together to fight the crows! It's the crows, cats, it's the crows!
posted by five fresh fish at 1:56 PM on November 27, 2010 [1 favorite]
posted by five fresh fish at 1:56 PM on November 27, 2010 [1 favorite]
big birds have little to fear from them
I've seen cats kill both pigeons and rabbits. Something the size of these magpies would be in real danger from a cat. If the cat can get that small mouth on the back of a neck, it's game over.
posted by bonehead at 2:15 PM on November 27, 2010
I've seen cats kill both pigeons and rabbits. Something the size of these magpies would be in real danger from a cat. If the cat can get that small mouth on the back of a neck, it's game over.
posted by bonehead at 2:15 PM on November 27, 2010
To me this really looks like the crows have arranged a wager over the outcome of a fight between their cats.
posted by tehloki at 2:18 PM on November 27, 2010
posted by tehloki at 2:18 PM on November 27, 2010
Cat fights are vicious. I never realised how vicious.
Hell, yes. When you see two males really go at it you literally see fur fly. I always thought that was just an empty phrase until I saw it happen in my garden. Great tufts of it, clawed off and kicked up. And you only have to look at the state of the ears and face of an un-neutered tom to see how violent cat fights get.
posted by Decani at 2:37 PM on November 27, 2010
Hell, yes. When you see two males really go at it you literally see fur fly. I always thought that was just an empty phrase until I saw it happen in my garden. Great tufts of it, clawed off and kicked up. And you only have to look at the state of the ears and face of an un-neutered tom to see how violent cat fights get.
posted by Decani at 2:37 PM on November 27, 2010
Ravens are known to pull the tails of feeding wolves and eagles, apparently just for the lulz. I've seen them doing it to bald eagles, which are much bigger and pointier than ravens, but not very clever. These here crows: trolling.
posted by Makwa at 2:38 PM on November 27, 2010 [1 favorite]
posted by Makwa at 2:38 PM on November 27, 2010 [1 favorite]
"reminds me of the time when the cats and the magpies had a 2-day battle after a cat stupidly killed a young magpie. Trenches, plans of battle, silence before the storm, air defense tactics, it was all there. I forget who won. Birds of the crow family are smart, and they hate cats."
Aw yeah, the stuff that goes on in the trees and on rooftops is epic sometimes. Our block is magpie turf, but the next block over is crow turf, and they fight for dominance every year. Probes into enemy territory, sometimes patrols in force, always met with swarming tactics by the other side. This year there was a lone crow that kept trying to live in our alley (probably an outcast with no home of its own), and it drove the magpies berzerk because it just wouldn't leave.
One day the crow was sitting on a roof near our yard, just chillin', when a bunch of magpies showed up and started squawking at it. It croaked back. Then more magpies flew in, then more and more, and then a bluejay and a robin showed up, and suddenly there's fourteen birds (I counted) lining the wires and rooftops around our yard, all of them squawking and tweeting and cawing at the crow, who kept croaking back at them and flapping its wings. It sounded like a farmyard riot, really loud. And when the noise and fury in the air reached its climax, this little cat came streaking in under the rose bushes, then it sat down under cover and watched the birds, who were too busy to even notice it. Finally the crow had enough and it flew off low between the houses, and the magpies, bluejay and robin all flew after it, zooming past the kitchen windows one after another like a fighter convoy. Then it was just the cat, who stayed for a while before ambling away.
posted by Kevin Street at 3:08 PM on November 27, 2010 [2 favorites]
Aw yeah, the stuff that goes on in the trees and on rooftops is epic sometimes. Our block is magpie turf, but the next block over is crow turf, and they fight for dominance every year. Probes into enemy territory, sometimes patrols in force, always met with swarming tactics by the other side. This year there was a lone crow that kept trying to live in our alley (probably an outcast with no home of its own), and it drove the magpies berzerk because it just wouldn't leave.
One day the crow was sitting on a roof near our yard, just chillin', when a bunch of magpies showed up and started squawking at it. It croaked back. Then more magpies flew in, then more and more, and then a bluejay and a robin showed up, and suddenly there's fourteen birds (I counted) lining the wires and rooftops around our yard, all of them squawking and tweeting and cawing at the crow, who kept croaking back at them and flapping its wings. It sounded like a farmyard riot, really loud. And when the noise and fury in the air reached its climax, this little cat came streaking in under the rose bushes, then it sat down under cover and watched the birds, who were too busy to even notice it. Finally the crow had enough and it flew off low between the houses, and the magpies, bluejay and robin all flew after it, zooming past the kitchen windows one after another like a fighter convoy. Then it was just the cat, who stayed for a while before ambling away.
posted by Kevin Street at 3:08 PM on November 27, 2010 [2 favorites]
One of my oldest friends has always been fearful of crows. Her rationale? "Crows know something we don't know."
After reading this thread, I'm beginning to see her point.
posted by emd3737 at 3:46 PM on November 27, 2010 [2 favorites]
After reading this thread, I'm beginning to see her point.
posted by emd3737 at 3:46 PM on November 27, 2010 [2 favorites]
Those crows are ASSHOLES.
posted by BitterOldPunk at 4:48 PM on November 27, 2010
posted by BitterOldPunk at 4:48 PM on November 27, 2010
Corvids can COUNT, at least to 5 or 6, which is a pretty amazing feat for anything or anyone without a language that includes symbolic stand-ins for concepts.
posted by Morrigan at 6:11 PM on November 27, 2010
posted by Morrigan at 6:11 PM on November 27, 2010
Crows, what an asshole!
posted by KingEdRa at 6:19 PM on November 27, 2010 [1 favorite]
posted by KingEdRa at 6:19 PM on November 27, 2010 [1 favorite]
Not assholes, ASCAR, the American Society of Crows And Ravens.
posted by tommyD at 2:53 AM on November 28, 2010
posted by tommyD at 2:53 AM on November 28, 2010
Here's some good info from Kevin McGowan of the Cornell Ornithology Lab, who studies American crows and fish crows.
posted by tommyD at 3:14 AM on November 28, 2010
posted by tommyD at 3:14 AM on November 28, 2010
The soundtrack is obviously the most interesting question here. If there was *one* moment where it synced up perfectly, that would make sense. But there seem to be several, which means either the music is origional, or someone remixed it to match, OR IT IS SIMPLY ANOTHER CASE OF CONFIRMATION BIAS.
FTFY, delmoi.
posted by IAmBroom at 4:48 AM on November 28, 2010
FTFY, delmoi.
posted by IAmBroom at 4:48 AM on November 28, 2010
confirmation bias
If we're looking at the section between 1:15 and 2:56, where most of the action is supported by various chords and other musical peaks: the occurrences where action is precisely timed with strong chords are in the majority at an approximate rate of 3 to 1. This should be compared to "missed chances," a category somewhat more open to discussion, obviously. This is too consistent for confirmation bias.
Editing would not be that hard in this case, because the musical background is often static, and the chords stick out at random moments. You establish a time line, put the entire file into garage band and clip stuff away before every chord you want precisely timed. Still, it's pretty cleverly done.
Confirmation bias kicks in either where there is a regular rhythmic pattern in the music (clearest at the tension-built-up of the beginning until 1:15, where some moves of those crows do get a percussion whack, but just as many random ones don't), or in those few stretches where some intense action is illustrated by a muddle of music and some sticking-out paws and flapping wings just happen to be melodically underlined.
As a comparison, here's a newly composed soundtrack by Andy Fisher for a well-known Tom and Jerry clip..
This is a professional example, meticulously timed all through (with a slight slip at 0:29).
posted by Namlit at 5:49 AM on November 28, 2010
If we're looking at the section between 1:15 and 2:56, where most of the action is supported by various chords and other musical peaks: the occurrences where action is precisely timed with strong chords are in the majority at an approximate rate of 3 to 1. This should be compared to "missed chances," a category somewhat more open to discussion, obviously. This is too consistent for confirmation bias.
Editing would not be that hard in this case, because the musical background is often static, and the chords stick out at random moments. You establish a time line, put the entire file into garage band and clip stuff away before every chord you want precisely timed. Still, it's pretty cleverly done.
Confirmation bias kicks in either where there is a regular rhythmic pattern in the music (clearest at the tension-built-up of the beginning until 1:15, where some moves of those crows do get a percussion whack, but just as many random ones don't), or in those few stretches where some intense action is illustrated by a muddle of music and some sticking-out paws and flapping wings just happen to be melodically underlined.
As a comparison, here's a newly composed soundtrack by Andy Fisher for a well-known Tom and Jerry clip..
This is a professional example, meticulously timed all through (with a slight slip at 0:29).
posted by Namlit at 5:49 AM on November 28, 2010
In rewatching that clip today, I'm thinking that the white cat was angry with the crows, and the black cat misread the white cat's anger as a threat to him, rather than the crows. That's why they're all picking on the poor thing -- the crows because they're jerks, and the black cat because he was fooled.
posted by Malor at 7:07 AM on November 28, 2010 [1 favorite]
posted by Malor at 7:07 AM on November 28, 2010 [1 favorite]
i was walking to the store one day in spring a few years back, and I saw a hawk flying erratically. it's unusual enough to see them in town, but they usually just circle. this one was flying around like crazy, tree to tree. sure enough, after a while i figured out it was getting tag-teamed by crows. I eventually counted 7 crows that were in on it. The crows are much more suited for that kind of low-speed manouvering, and of course there were more of them, so they were pretty much closing and scoring at will. If they'd had stronger talons, they would have taken the hawk out while I watched, I'm pretty sure.
posted by lodurr at 2:01 PM on November 28, 2010
posted by lodurr at 2:01 PM on November 28, 2010
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posted by Chocolate Pickle at 8:41 AM on November 27, 2010