Carrion Crow Collects Fresh Twig of Dawn Redwood to Build Its Nest in Early Spring

A carrion crow (Corvus corone, family Corvidae) trying hard to snap a defoliated side branch of a dawn redwood (Metasequoia glyptostroboides, family Cupressaceae) in the backyard. The bird awkwardly trimmed the bifurcated twig to make it portable. You can occasionally hear it calling each other with its partner somewhere nearby (1:31-). Eventually, the carrion crow managed to fly away carrying the nest material in its bill. Captured through a windowpane in the sunny early-morning (around 7:05 AM) of mid-March 2025 in Japan. Although there was still lingering snow on the ground, it was the onset of their breeding season. The pair of carrion crow started building their own nest on the treetop somewhere in the neighbourhood. For a full story (text in Japanese); https://sigma-nature-vlog.blogspot.com/2026/07/blog-post.html