Seminar: The Number & Trends of Breeding Carrion Crows in Yerevan, with Karen Aghababyan & Anush Khachatryan

Carrion crows (Corvus corone) are well known birds that live close to humans and have some specific role in urban ecosystems. The results of a multi-year study conducted by Dr. Karen Aghababyan, chief scientist of the AUA Acopian Center for the Environment, and Ms. Anush Khachatrian (Dr. Aghababyan’s advisee and PhD candidate at the Yerevan State University) will be presented on Friday, July 25, 2014, 3-5pm at AUA room 133W PAB (40 Marshal Baghramyan Ave.).

Dr. Aghabayan and Ms. Khachatrian’s study investigated the density of carrion crows and its population trends in Yerevan. In addition, the study examined the relationship between their population densities and food supply. Observations of feeding behavior of the species have been made as supplemental to the food supply data. The study shows that the density of carrion crows does not depend on the number of plastic garbage containers along the streets, but it depends on the number and spatial arrangement of open metal trashcans, which are mainly located in building courtyards.