Summer Merrell, an undergraduate researcher in the Tomback Lab, presented a talk at the 46th Annual West Coast Biological Sciences Undergraduate Research Conference, Loyola Marymount University, Los Angeles on April 22, "Dining with the wolves: rewards and risks to magpies and ravens."  Summer and her advisor, Diana Tomback, have been studying wolves, magpies, and ravens at the Colorado Wolf and Wildlife Sanctuary for nearly 2 years. You can read an abridged version of the abstract for their presentation below.

We study the interactions between black-billed magpies (Pica hudsonia), common ravens (Corvus corax) (Family Corvidae), and captive gray wolves (Canis lupus) at the Colorado Wolf and Wildlife Center. In the wild, both bird species show up quickly at wolf kills. We determined if ravens and magpies associate with sanctuary wolves at feeding time; whether both bird species receive food rewards; what proportion of birds is rewarded; whether individual wolves differ in their reaction to the birds; and if the birds are harmed by interacting with wolves. We observed wolf and bird behaviors during feeding tours across 20 visits and eight wolf enclosures per visit. Overall, 33% of ravens and 43% of magpies received food rewards. Wolves differed in their response to ravens and magpies, but mostly ignored bird. presence. We examined food type, temperature, and season for additional insights. We conclude that wolves are not bad dinner dates.