Catherine Stull, age 14, of Asheville, North Carolina, for her question:

Is a blackbird the same as a crow?

There is a difference between black bird and blackbird. Any bird wearing a complete outfit of black feathers may be called a black bird. This includes the crow, though his glossy black plumage usually reflects glints of purple and other rich colors. He is a black bird. But a true blackbird is another creature altogether. Our well known Brewer Blackbird is just one of several species. It so happens that his black feathers gleam with even more purple beauty than the crow's. And Mrs. Brewer Blackbird wears a rather drab outfit of greyish brown.

The crow is more than twice as big as the genuine blackbird    and every vegetable gardener fights a losing battle to keep the sassy character from snitching his crops. The smaller blackbird is rather shy and usually prefers to dine in the wilds on insects and weed seeds. As a rule he feeds near the ground with his wife and youngsters. The noisy crow lives high in the treetops with a gang of his squawky friends and relatives.