City of Crows

 

The Crows of Auburn, New York

Every winter afternoon, for at least the past 100 years, in the Central New York (CNY) city of Auburn, a unique spectacle unfolds. Stand outside anywhere in town and watch the sky as the sun begins to set. At first you see nothing. Then a few crows, drifting raggedly toward the center of town, cawing back and forth to their companions. Then more crows. And more crows. And still more crows, until the whole sky is a boisterous river of crows - an estimated 70 thousand or more - converging from all directions from their day jobs in the farm fields to their nightly roost in the middle of this city. It is pretty much impossible not to think of some nightmare movie scene, or a novel by Stephen King, as thousands of black birds fill the red sunset sky. And still they keep coming. As darkness falls, the bare winter trees along the Owasco River, and the streets of downtown return to full leaf as if it were summer again. Except that the leaves are black. And alive.

Not that they simply land and roost, oh no. First they have to make an enormous and raucous commotion. Thousands will land in a tree, then on some invisible signal they will all change their minds and take flight to a different spot. This process is repeated in many locations and times until well after dark, when at last they are settled in their places for the rest of the night. And there they remain until daylight, sitting silently in the open on bare branches, devoid of any shelter from the snow, wind, and rain but their own feathers. On a cold, blustery night with rain and sleet coming sideways, you can walk down the street and see them sitting there, the very definition of stoic.

It is difficult to put into words the impact of this spectacle! It must be seen.