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Corvidae:
Corvidae is a family of oscine passerine birds that contains the crows, ravens, rooks, jackdaws, jays, magpies, treepies and nutcrackers (Clayton and Emery 2005). Collectively its members are called corvids and there are over 120 species. They are medium to large birds with strong feet and bills, rictal bristles and a single moult each year (most passerines moult twice).
Corvids are found worldwide except for the tip of South America and the polar ice caps (Clayton and Emery 2005). Recently the Corvus genus has re-entered Australia, resulting in five new species and one new subspecies (see crows). The majority of the species are found in tropical South and Central America, southern Asia and Eurasia, with fewer than 10 species each in Africa, Australasia and North America. |
