Corvus palmarum


Not all authorities yet acknowledge the recommended split of the two Palm Crows (on Cuba and Hispaniola). The conservation status of the Cuban form is distinctly worrying: only in the Sierra de Najasa (where this digiscoped image was taken) does it still appear reasonably numerous. As mentioned under the Cuban Crow, vocalisations present the best means of separating these two species, but two of the other features that can be used to identify the Palm Crow are (just) visible in this photo, namely the wing-length (which falls quite short of the tail tip) and the feathers of the forehead, which are rather longer than in Cuban Crow and extend over the nostrils.