CreatureData

American crow

Corvus brachyrhynchos C. L. Brehm, 1822

LCLeast Concernsongbirds

The American crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos) is a species in the family Corvidae, order Passeriformes. Recorded adults weigh 425 g to 458 g and live up to 14.6 years. Its IUCN Red List status is Least Concern.

No freely licensed photo yet

Quick facts about the American crow

Weight
425 g – 458 gsrc for Weight
Length
Not recorded
Lifespan
14.6 yearssrc for Lifespan
Diet
Omnivoresrc for Diet
Longest recorded lifespan
20 years
Main food
Not recorded
Habitat
human_modifiedsrc for Habitat
Egg incubation
18 dayssrc for Egg incubation
Young per litter or clutch
4.59src for Young per litter or clutch
Age at maturity
2 yearssrc for Age at maturity
Litters or clutches a year
1src for Litters or clutches a year
Lifestyle
Terrestrialsrc for Lifestyle
Migration
Partialsrc for Migration
Conservation status
Least Concern (IUCN)src for Conservation status
Countries on record
Not recorded

Photos of the American crow

Only freely licensed photos are shown. Each carries its creator and licence.

1 more photo exists under a licence we cannot display: view at source.

Where does the American crow live?

Not recorded

What is the American crow?

Quoted from WikipediaCC BY-SA 4.0

The American crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos) is a large passerine bird species of the family Corvidae. It is a common bird found throughout much of North America, only absent from the tundra biome. The American crow is the New World counterpart to the carrion crow and the hooded crow of Eurasia, occupying similar ecological niches.

The American crow has all-black plumage, with iridescent feathers. It looks similar to other all-black corvids. It is highly intelligent, similar to other Corvidae, and is adaptable to human environments.

The American crow can be distinguished from the common raven by its smaller size and a slightly less pronounced beak, and from the carrion crow by its size, as the carrion crow is larger and of a stockier build. The American crow can be difficult to distinguish from the fish crow; however, the fish crow tends to fluff its throat feathers when calling. The American crow is an omnivore, feeding on insects, seeds, and nuts while also preying on small animals. It also rarely feeds on carrion, leading to associations with death, thieves, and bad luck in some cultures; however, in Native American and some Gaelic cultures, crows are considered good luck due to their intelligence.

The American crow is common, widespread, and susceptible to the West Nile virus, making it a useful bioindicator for tracking the virus's spread. Direct transmission of the virus from crows to humans is impossible. According to BirdLife International, there are 31 million American crows as of 2012.

From the Wikipedia article “American crow” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=American_crow&oldid=1380651512), by Wikipedia contributors, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). This block is kept separate from our own text.

Is the American crow endangered?

The American crow is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List: it is not currently at risk of extinction.

  1. LCLeast Concern
  2. NTNear Threatened
  3. VUVulnerable
  4. ENEndangered
  5. CRCritically Endangered
  6. EWExtinct in the Wild
  7. EXExtinct

Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Least Concern species.

How is the American crow classified?

  1. kingdomAnimalia
  2. phylumChordata
  3. classAves
  4. orderPasseriformes
  5. familyCorvidae
  6. genusCorvus
  7. SpeciesCorvus brachyrhynchos C. L. Brehm, 1822

Synonyms Corvus americanus, Corvus frugivorus, Nucifraga brachyrhynchos

Other names and names in other languages (60)
  • Common crowEnglish
  • GáagiiEnglish
  • زاغ أمريكيArabic
  • غراب أمريكيArabic
  • Американска вранаBulgarian
  • Cornella americanaCatalan
  • cornella nord-americanaCatalan
  • ᎪᎦCherokee
  • vrána americkáCzech
  • brân AmericaWelsh
  • Amerikansk KrageDanish
  • AmerikakräheGerman
  • Amerika-KräheGerman
  • AmerikanerkräheGerman
  • Αμερικάνικη ΜαυροκουρούναGreek
  • amerika korvoEsperanto
  • Larĝbeka korvoEsperanto
  • Cuervo americanoSpanish
  • Cuervo NorteamericanoSpanish
  • ameerika varesEstonian
  • کلاغ آمریکاییPersian
  • amerikanvarisFinnish
  • Corneille d'AmériqueFrench
  • Corneille d’AmériqueFrench
  • Caróg MheiriceánachIrish
  • fitheachScottish Gaelic
  • עורב אמריקאיHebrew
  • rövidcsőrű varjúHungarian
  • Corvo americanoItalian
  • cornacchia americanaItalian
  • アメリカガラスJapanese
  • merko cipnrkorvoLojban
  • 미국까마귀Korean
  • KȟaŋǧíLakota
  • amerikinė varnaLithuanian
  • k̓aʔk̓aʔlut
  • Amerikas vārnaLatvian
  • ka'qawejMi'kmaw
  • അമേരിക്കൻ കാക്കMalayalam
  • Amerikaanse kraaiDutch
  • amerikakråkeNorwegian
  • AandegOjibwa
  • wrona amerykańskaPolish
  • امریکی کاںWestern Panjabi
  • gralha-americanaPortuguese
  • Corvo-americanoPortuguese
  • Американский воронRussian
  • Американская воронаRussian
  • Gá’ga:’Seneca
  • vrana krátkozobáSlovak
  • ameriška vranaSlovenian
  • америчка вранаSerbian
  • Američka vranaSerbian
  • amerikansk kråkaSwedish
  • Amerika KargasıTurkish
  • Amerikan KargasıTurkish
  • ворона американськаUkrainian
  • Quạ MỹVietnamese
  • 短嘴鴉Chinese
  • 短嘴鸦Chinese

Catalogue of LifeWikipediaiNaturalistTAXREFWikidataWoRMSIUCN Red List

Relatives of the American crow

Other species in the same genus Corvus.

LC, Least Concern
Rook (Corvus frugilegus)

Rook

Corvus frugilegus

Corvidae

LC, Least Concern
House crow (Corvus splendens)

House crow

Corvus splendens

Corvidae

LC, Least Concern
Pied crow (Corvus albus)

Pied crow

Corvus albus

Corvidae

CompareAmerican crow vs Common ravenAmerican crow vs RookAmerican crow vs Hooded crowAmerican crow vs Carrion crow

Common questions

Answered only where our data holds the answer.

How big is the American crow?

An adult American crow weighs 425 g – 458 g, according to values recorded on Wikidata.

Is the American crow endangered?

The American crow is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, meaning it is not currently at risk of extinction.

How long does the American crow live?

The American crow has a recorded lifespan of 14.6 years.

What kind of animal is the American crow?

The American crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos) belongs to the family Corvidae in the order Passeriformes.

Sources and how to cite this page

Data as of 2026-11-11. How this page is put together.

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APA

CreatureData. (2026). American crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/american-crow

MLA

“American crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/american-crow.

BibTeX
@misc{american_crow_2026,
  title = {American crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos)},
  author = {{CreatureData}},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/american-crow},
  note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}