Fact: Those cute fluffy babies are actually a variety of baby rails, including a corncrake. Notice how feathery and soft they look, like a baby duck or chicken? That’s because there are basically two strategies for how young are born. They can be altricial, which means you’re born naked and blind (i.e helpless) or precocial, which means you’re born fully feathered or furred and are ready to go from day one.
Fun fact, most birds that are ground-nesters, so game birds, waterbirds, etc., are born feathered and adorable. Whereas most birds born in arboreal nests are little naked jelly beans. Crows, fall into the latter category as anyone who studies crows, rehabs crows, or curiously peeked into a crow nest can attest to.
This is a common repost from the old site, these are not baby crows.
Relevant text:
Fact: Those cute fluffy babies are actually a variety of baby rails, including a corncrake. Notice how feathery and soft they look, like a baby duck or chicken? That’s because there are basically two strategies for how young are born. They can be altricial, which means you’re born naked and blind (i.e helpless) or precocial, which means you’re born fully feathered or furred and are ready to go from day one.
Fun fact, most birds that are ground-nesters, so game birds, waterbirds, etc., are born feathered and adorable. Whereas most birds born in arboreal nests are little naked jelly beans. Crows, fall into the latter category as anyone who studies crows, rehabs crows, or curiously peeked into a crow nest can attest to.