Why the roof of the Forbidden City is always so many crows

Qing Tai Zu Nurhachu in the beginning of the venture, was pursued by the Ming army, in the heat of the moment, lying down in a ditch to hide. At this time. A group of crows have flown to fall on his body, he will be covered tightly, only to be spared, so there are "crows to save the ancestors" said. Qing Emperor Huang taiji has also been saved by the crows, so Huang taiji not only do not allow people to harm the crows, but also specializing in the Imperial Palace in Shenyang Qingning Palace before the establishment of the "Solon pole". "Solon pole", is the traditional Manchu sacrifices to heaven "God pole", more than ten feet high, the top of a bowl, specializing in placing grains and meat sacrifices to the crows. After the Qing Emperor Shunzhi entered the country, also set up in the Forbidden City in Beijing, "Solon pole", to maintain the highest specification of the worship of crows. Warned his children and grandchildren, not to shoot crows, have their own food, do not let the crows starve. Later generations of Qing emperors honored from the ancestral training, in the Forbidden City to raise countless crows.

2. Map of the crows' routes in the morning and evening

Based on experience and investigations by zoologists, the crows mainly appear in the city in winter, flying out of the city in the early morning along the Beijing Central Axis towards the Olympic Park, and then flying back to the city in the evening. We've drawn up a map of the crows.

From the map, we can see that not only the Chang'an Street line, but also the Princess Tomb - Wukesong line, the neighborhood of Beijing Normal University, several major business districts and the city center park, are all the crows' ghettos. Among them, the most exaggerated is the Princess Tomb-Wukesong line. Every winter evening, bird poop falls from the sky, a great spectacle.

3. The causes are complex and influenced by vegetation, temperature and human activities. They go out of the city during the day to forage for food and escape the cold of the suburbs at night

The causes affecting the distribution of birds within the city are very complex: vegetation, temperature, and human activities. Western studies have shown that vegetation cover affects more than 50% of the distribution of urban birds.

Bald-pencil crows, large-billed crows, and chaffinches are fans of the city's tall trees, building tops, and utility poles. Street-side street trees, parks and campus trees provide excellent habitat for crows. In addition, city centers are warmer than the outside due to the heat island effect caused by human activity. Crows primarily look for food, such as corn, and urban garbage in the winter, traveling out of the city during the day to forage for food, and flying back to the city center at night to escape the cold of the suburbs.

4. Crows flock to specific locations in the old city center

Why do crows flock to specific locations in the old city center and not to other vegetated areas of the city? This involves the issue of cultural tradition and the structure of the old city. Huge flocks of crows have existed in Beijing since the Qing Dynasty.

First of all, the Manchus had a "crow worship" complex. The old city of Beijing used to be a place where the Manchus lived, and in the old days, there were many solenoid poles in the yards of Manchu homes, and there were crows in the city during the Qing Dynasty, which continues to this day. In addition, crows are omnivores, and are quite receptive to carrion and urban garbage. Wangfujing, Xidan and other places have long been commercial gatherings; there are sacrificial animals in the Imperial Temple; the area around Princess Tomb and Wukesong used to be a chaotic graveyard; and the North Normal University is surrounded by "Iron Lion Grave", "Little Xitian", and "Beitai Pingzhuang", which used to be the home of the Manchus, and was once a place for the Manchus to live. "around, was once a Manchu aristocrat Erk Dai Qing family cemetery.