White-necked crow

The white-necked crow is the largest of the four Caribbean crow species. Two other species, the Cuban crow and the Jamaican crow, appear to be very closely related to it sharing several key morphological features. The fourth species from this region, the palm crow, would appear to be a later arrival and shows similarities to the fish crow of North America and two Mexican species, despite it also being native to Hispaniola.

A stocky bird, this forest crow is found on the island of Hispaniola (Haiti and Dominican Republic). It was formerly native to Puerto Rico, but is extirpated there due to considerable forest clearance and hunting. It inhabits both lowland and mountain forest, and unlike the related Cuban crow, does not appear to tolerate areas that have been cleared for farming. It often flies high over the forest canopy and soars on thermals, unlike the palm crow, which rarely, if ever, soars.