====== Do Crow Bring Gifts to Humans ======

{{ :gifts_of_a_crow.jpeg?200|}}Crows, who are known for their remarkable intelligence, have been documented leaving “gifts” for humans, who have earned their trust. These corvid offerings represent something extraordinary, meaning that a wild animal is choosing to reciprocate kindness to us humans without domestication or training.

Corvids, and in particular crows, can reason about what other crows or humans might be thinking or intending. This advanced cognitive framework provides the foundation for their ability to form relationships with humans that go beyond instinctual interactions. This is the potential reason, which explains their gift-giving behaviour as a sophisticated form of social reciprocity rather than simple conditioning.

John Marzluff, a crow behaviour researcher at the University of Washington, calls this reciprocal altruism. Crows remember who helps them and may respond in kind. Crow behaviour is not random. Crows often return to the same person. They sometimes wait for acknowledgment from us before leaving.

What types of objects do they choose? Controlled experiments show corvids do not universally prefer shiny objects. But they do show interest in novel items, particularly small, portable objects that stand out from their environment. The gifts people receive often include both shiny and non-shiny items such as plastic toys, natural stones, bits of coloured glass, fabric scraps and even wilted flowers.