BirdNoir: That Crow Sounds Fishy

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BirdNoir: That Crow Sounds Fishy
Written by Ariana Remmel

This is BirdNoir. I’m Private Eye Michael Stein.

Every good investigator knows to stay vigilant for suspicious behavior. But a call from my old friend Cora reminded me that there’s often more to a bird than meets the eye.

Cora: Michael, I just found the strangest bird. He looked like a crow, but sounded all wrong!

That does seem odd, Cora. Could he be a Common Raven? They look like giant crows that sound deep and croaky.

         [Common Raven]

Cora: No, his caws were short and nasal. I even said to him, “What, you got a cold or something?” And that bird called back to me saying “eh-uh”!

         [Fish Crow]

Cora: I mean, the whole thing seems fishy to me.

Fishy is right, but not for the reason you think. In most of the US, the American Crow is the only crow in town. That’s the caw you’re probably used to.

         [American Crow]

But on the Atlantic Coast — and parts of the Midwest too — the Fish Crow is a common city bird. The two species look the same, but the Fish Crow’s nasal caw is unmistakable.

         [Fish Crow]

Cora: Huh, I had no idea there were two kinds of crows!

Actually, there are more than 30 species worldwide!

Cora: Okay, wiseguy. I’ll drop you a line if any of them come cawing.

         [Fish Crow]

Another case closed! For BirdNoir, I’m Michael Stein, Private Eye.

###
Senior Producer: Mark Bramhill
Producer: Sam Johnson
Managing Producer: Jazzi Johnson
Managing Producer: Ariana Remmel
Content Director: Jonese Franklin

Bird sounds provided by The Macaulay Library of Natural Sounds at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, New York. American Crow ML214721311 recorded by Jay McGowan. Common Raven ML137574 recorded by Gerrit Vyn. Fish Crow ML73884 recorded by Geoffrey A. Keller.
BirdNote’s theme was composed and played by Nancy Rumbel and John Kessler.
© 2026 BirdNote August 2026
Narrators: Michael Stein and Ariana Remmel

ID# noir-15-2026-08-05    noir-15