I haven't read the book, but I believe it's been known for a while that crows can *use* tools (pick up a twig to get at food), but only discovered in the past few years that they can actually *fashion* them (bend the wire to a shape that is better at getting the food).

Alex, I thought of that connection right after I posted this. Such a good joke setup! Then I figured I could rely on you (or maybe some other astute commenter) to bring it up. I think what they really see is a stone in a face.

Beautiful and effective.

I'm guessing because that was a TV show, and this is limited to movies.

Phenomena
Doo dooo be-doo-doo

Sweet, Kevin, you saw them back in the Stumpy Joe period!

Why can't she just use the name of her childhood pet plus the name of the street she grew up on, like the rest of us?
--Moe Shadypalms

It's been identified as a specimen, which happens to have lost two arms, of a rare but known species of squid: http://www.kpua.net/news.php?id=11960 .