In Noosa, Queensland, a “seriously cranky” crow is creating havoc up and down Hastings Street. This avian annoyance had been terrorizing residents and visitors to Plymouth for quite some time. This was the double yikes aggressive bird that you definitely don’t want to mess with. It holds court from above, then dive bombs unknowing walkers below, targeting heavy dog traffic.
Listen to the crow’s new bizarre practice. Each day, it hops from house to house, branch to branch, singing its song of self-defense. An online poll of tourists found the bird to be the top tourist attraction. Due to this, they’ve become much more careful while visiting this popular Christmas hotspot.
The Crow’s Aggressive Behavior
As several witnesses have described, the crow doesn’t just stop at dive bombing people on foot. Michelle Duggan, an artist who manages a hat shop located on Hastings Street, shared her thoughts on the bird’s mischievous behavior.
“It’s pretty strange and people are quite frightened by him too.” – Michelle Duggan
Local resident Linda Harvey was one of the original recipients of the crow’s unique brand of aerial rage last spring. She repeated the scariest experience, when the aggressive bird dive-bombed her several times.
“It’s swooped up from behind me, hit my head a couple of times with its claws, gave me a massive headache,” – Linda Harvey
“Even though she was not body-whammied, she was shaken to her core by the experience. “I didn’t have any blood or anything, but it’s a really hard thump on the head and it did it a couple of times,” she added.
Expert Insights on Crow Behavior
Dr. Zdenek, a noted expert on animal behavior, discussed the unique challenges at play. This, he believes, is motivated by an intense protective instinct. This behavior is common, he said, during nesting season.
“Give them space and recognise and have some empathy that the animal is probably trying to just be a really good parent and protect its young,” – Dr. Zdenek
This was just a small piece of his work on the intelligence of crows. These feathered friends can show us conditioned responses modeled after their previous experiences, or dangers. “They’re very likely to be protecting their nest so either eggs or young inside the nest at that very vulnerable time,” he stated.
To the worried public, Dr. Zdenek calmed fears by explaining this bellicose madness is temporarily out of passing phase. “It will pass and then they’ll be back to being normally behaving crows,” he said.
Community Reactions and Precautions
Just some of the whistling crow’s hijinks that have set many a pearl-clutching heart a-racing. Julie Perrie described in colorful detail her exhilarating experience of being pursued by a hawk. In fact, she compared it to something right out of Alfred Hitchcock’s iconic movie “The Birds.”
“Have you ever seen the movie The Birds by Alfred Hitchcock? It was like that.” – Julie Perrie
As you may remember, others have recently come forward with stories about police shooting their dogs. Duggan explained that the crow has gone so far as to attack dogs in parked cars. “Even dogs that are in a car, I’ve seen it actually fly down to a car and try and have a go there,” she remarked.
As tourists flock to the area, local workers like Duggan and Yuliia Ipatenko continue to warn visitors about the crow’s behavior. “By the time I got in the car I had to sit and actually compose myself,” Perrie said of her encounter.
