Urban crows eat too much junk food, angler snatched off boat by hungry croc: Outdoors Oddities

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Crows leave after raiding a box of garbage at 22 Somerset Ave. in Auburn. (C.W. McKeen photo)
David Figura | By David Figura | The Post-Standard
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on June 23, 2014 at 9:45 AM, updated June 23, 2014 at 10:26 AM

Research has shown that crows are among the brainiest birds around. However, it seems that a lot of suburban and urban crows need to go on a diet - a healthier one

I came across a SUNY Binghamton study that concluded that city crows are in general smaller than their rural cousins. The reason? It's because of what they eat. They consume too much junk food.

The study showed that "not only were suburban nestlings smaller than their rural brethren, their levels of blood protein were also lower. The results suggest that their diets, while adequate in terms of calories, lack nutrients that nestlings need to grow to their full potential size," according to

You'd think they'd know better. Must be the French Fries.

Other "Oddities in the Outdoors" include:

1. A 62-year-old angler was recently snatched from his boat in a popular fishing spot in Australia by a hungry, 15-foot, seawater crocodile.

The guy was cleaning out a bucket on the side the boat when the croc came out of nowhere and pulled him off the boat and into the water. His wife, son and daughter-in-law were in the boat with him at the time, according to

His remains were later found by authorities.

NORTHERN-FLYING-SQUIRREL-3.jpgFlying squirrels don't fly -- they glide. 

2. New York State is home to two types of relatively small flying squirrels - the northern flying squirrel and the southern flying squirrel.

The squirrels don't fly - they glide through the air. By extending their feet, they cause the large flaps of skin along the sides of their body to stretch tight, forming a wing-like structure, The Conservationist magazine reported.

Their ranges often overlap, but in general the southern ones live south of the Mohawk River and the northern ones live in the northern part of the state. Both species are occasionally seen during the day, but they're mostly nocturnal, according to the article.

The northern ones are reddish-brown in color; their southern cousins, are more of a mouse-like gray, according to the article.
3). Sunday is supposed to be day of rest. And if you're in Pennsylvania, that applies to hunters.

A U.S. District Court judge recently ruled in a lawsuit case that that ban is completely constitutional,

Most other states, including New York allow Sunday hunting. The judge rejected the premise that the ban had a religious basis and other points that were raised in the lawsuit, filed by Hunters United for Sunday Hunting (HUSH).

The restrictions aren't total, though. While Pennsylvania's law bars most hunting for large and small game on Sunday there are exceptions. Feral swine cows, foxes and coyotes can be hunted on that day. Farmers may also kill deer or elk that are damaging their crops or property, the website reported.

The state's game commission in 2010 passed a resolution urging the state Legislature to lift the Sunday hunting ban. A 2011 legislative study concluded that Sunday hunting would generate more than $800 million in economic activity statewide, the website reported.