I was amused several years ago when someone very naïvely asked what the difference was between the "carrion crows" that are always mentioned in medieval historical novels and medievalish fantasies, and the crows that we see all over Southern California today? Duh! The difference is that Southern California today is not littered with dead bodies, so the crows don't have any access to carrion -- except that if the street cleanup services are not prompt, you can often see crows pecking at roadkill (usually possum) in the middle of the streets.
I was amused several years ago when someone very naïvely asked what the difference was between the "carrion crows" that are always mentioned in medieval historical novels and medievalish fantasies, and the crows that we see all over Southern California today? Duh! The difference is that Southern California today is not littered with dead bodies, so the crows don't have any access to carrion -- except that if the street cleanup services are not prompt, you can often see crows pecking at roadkill (usually possum) in the middle of the streets.
Fred Patten