Yes, crows do eat ticks. Crows are omnivores, meaning they eat almost anything. Aside from eating plant-based food to every animal, they are insect-lovers.
But what are ticks, and how do they become a crow’s meal?
Let’s find out more about it.
Contents
Ticks as prey to crows
Ticks are tiny, blood-sucking bugs. They are everywhere, which is why crows can find them without even searching.
The size of ticks can be as small as the size of a pin’s head and as large as a pencil eraser.
They live as parasites to many animals. Despite their size, they can cause harm so intense that they can even kill their victim.
The ticks’ size can pretty much be the factor for them to become a crow’s prey.
The smallest ticks may be hard to see. The larger ones like the engorged ticks, however, can attract a hungry crow.
What type of ticks do crows eat?
Many types of ticks roam around and live on different hosts.
But, crows tend to feed on ticks that are living in bodies of bigger animals. Among such animals are cattle, horses, and deers.
Ticks living in domestic animals such as dogs, cats, and others won’t likely get eaten by crows.
There are five common types of ticks. These are:
- American Dog Tick
- Lone Star Tick
- Black-legged Tick (or Deer Tick)
- Brown Dog Tick
- Winter Tick
Out of these five, the most ticks that crows eat are the Deer Tick and the Winter Tick.
Deer Ticks feed on a variety of hosts. In the fall, the adult deer ticks primarily feed on deers.
Once these ticks turn mature, they become engorged and more visible for crows to peck.
A tick’s size can be as large as a pencil eraser. Thus, these parasites can attract crows through walking deers and even cattle, horses, and rhinos.
The Winter Tick feeds on the same hosts: cattle, deers, and horses. Hunters usually find winter ticks in large numbers on deer carcasses.
Thus, with a carcass lying around, a crow would have a good meal with deer meat and ticks.
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Where do ticks live?
Ticks are parasites. Thus, they live and come from areas where their host usually roams and live.
These parasites tend to populate in elevated, in wooded, and grassy locations. Even so, they can also live in urban areas and beaches found in coastal areas.
As parasites, ticks tend to crawl and suck on the blood of animals. Most of its victims are deers, rabbits, birds, lizards, squirrels, mice, and other rodents.
Crows prey on pretty much every animal the ticks also pursue. Thus, the chance of encountering each other happens every time.
While crows tend to feed on animal hosts of ticks, they can also eat dead animals.
You may be wondering if crows can also find ticks in carrion or dead animals.
Do ticks live on dead animals?
The simple answer would be No. Ticks cannot survive sucking on the blood of dead animals.
As parasites, ticks’ primary method of obtaining a host is through its movement.
Ticks can detect whether a host is suitable by their body temperature.
Thus, if a host dies, the tick will leave the body as it gets colder moments after its death.
Where do crows find ticks?
Crows can find ticks on the animals they prey.
In most cases, it won’t happen that a crow would ignore the bigger prey to chew on a tiny tick.
If a tick’s host happens to be rabbits, birds, squirrels, mice, or other rodents, a crow would likely eat it.
A crow would likely peck on a tick living in the body of bigger animals that they can’t kill.
Crows are famous for eating ticks attached to bigger animals like deers and rhinos.
True enough, they would likely ignore ticks if they find a dead deer or rhino, or any other dead animal.
However, the sight of ticks in big live animals can attract crows to peck on it.
Crows: a good friend to a tick’s host
While crows are excellent scavengers and pests, they can be pretty helpful to a tick’s host.
A tick attached to a big animal may seem harmless.
They seem harmless because the host animals ignore them like they aren’t there.
Even so, as tiny as they are, they can cause great harm that is enough to kill a prominent host.
Some ticks just suck the blood out. But, with a swarm sucking out a single animal, they can take it down.
What’s worse is that some ticks can send diseases to its host.
By eating these parasites, crows relieve the hosts from possible disease and danger.
A lot of videos depict such a beautiful act of crows to other animals attacked by ticks.
While crows can be annoying with their loud caws and harassing, they can also do good by eating ticks.
Do other birds eat ticks as well?
Crows aren’t the primary predators of ticks. Other types of birds are more famous when it comes to eating ticks.
Birds such as chickens, quails, wild turkeys, and guinea fowls are expert tick eaters.
Ticks also serve as the primary sources of food for other ants, spiders, and different types of birds.
Among these lists, guinea fowls are the best tick-eaters searching for ticks and other bugs all the time.
According to an individual, chickens only come by second to guinea fowls in eating ticks:
Chickens are second to guinea fowl in eating deer ticks. They are not as effective because they won’t roam the property as guineas do. They like to scratch the ground, so chickens can damage gardens or landscaping. They are prey for animals such as coyotes since they don’t move as quickly or fly as well as guinea fowl.
Jessie Law
Further, other animals are also known for eating ticks. These are both yellow and red-billed oxpeckers, fork-tailed drongos, and cattle egrets.
Summary
- Crows do eat ticks. Aside from their usual animal meat and crops, they also feed on insects, including large ticks.
- Ticks are easy to peck and are available almost anywhere. Thus, they become easy targets for crows.
- There are various types of ticks. However, crows eat most ticks that live on big animals, as they are also engorged and noticeable.
- Ticks live on animals that serve as prey to crows. For this reason, crows would either peck or eat them together with the host.
- With the crows eating ticks out of animals, they provide relief and serve as friends.
- Aside from crows, other birds are famous and experts when it comes to eating ticks.
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