Train your own crows !
The video is better than the text. Basically there's a feeding box with several training stages for the birds :
1) Open feeding so the birds get used to the box
2) Automatic opening so the birds get used to the mechanical movements
3) The machine dispenses coins which the birds have to put in a slot to receive food
4) No coins provided - the birds must find them for themselves.
1-3 have been experimentally verified and there's anecdotal evidence of 4, as well as using crushed cans to trigger the food release mechanism in similar experiments.
My inner cynic says it would be better to train people to pick up their own rubbish, but training crows is innately cool. I wonder what the long-term, large-scale effects of success will be. Would people be more casual about throwing away trash knowing the crows will collect it ?
https://boingboing.net/2018/08/22/build-a-crowbox-kit-and-become.html
I already feed the local crows and magpies, so this is great, ha. I'd love to give it a try. Mind you, they might feel a bit short changed, so to speak, seeing as they were eating for free before....
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