American Crows and Ring-billed Gulls

This morning at school I saw many small flocks of lark sparrows flying by.  Two other birds common at the school, and anywhere in the United States, are American crows and ring-billed gulls.

American crows are found throughout the United States except in Alaska and the desert.  They can be found wherever there is open space, from farmland to cities to open woods, and will eat nearly anything they can find, including garbage.  All crows are also very intelligent birds.  They and ravens are some of the most intelligent birds in the world.  They can get food out of hard to open bags, use tools, and solve problems.  They like windy days when they can play around in the air.  The one below I photographed in Guajome Park.

American Crow

The gull below is the ring-billed gull.  It can be found throughout the United States around any bodies of water, like rivers and lakes, not just the ocean, which is why it's not always accurate to call a gull a 'seagull.'  They can also be found in cities.  They are particularly common at my school when there is a storm over the ocean.  More of them come inland to escape the rough waves.  They hang around in a very large group at the school, and make all sorts of odd noises, including a very dinosaur-like noise that gave me a scare!  This one below is not at my school, however.  It was flying past my yard.  For some reason, I've never been able to take a really good picture of them, even though they're so common.

Ring-billed Gull