Oral traditions of Indigenous American peoples (as well as those of other Indigenous peoples) have long been discussed with regard to their reliability as metaphorical accounts based upon historical knowledge. I explore this debate using stories to discuss the importance of the role of Corvidae in Indigenous knowledge traditions and how these stories convey information about important socioecological relationships. Contemporary science reveals that Corvids important in cultural traditions were companions to humans and important components of the ecology of the places where these peoples lived. Ravens, Crows, Jays, and Magpies are identified as having special roles as cooperators, agents of change, trickster figures, and important teachers. Canada (or Gray) Jays serve as trickster/Creator of the Woodland Cree people, Wisakyjak. Magpies won the Great Race around the Black Hills to determine whether humans would eat bison or vice versa. I analyze these stories in terms of their ecological meaning, in an effort to illustrate how the stories employ dramatic settings to encourage respect and fix relationships in the sociocultural memory of the people.

中文翻译：

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了解非凡的生物：本土故事和真正的鸟类

美国原住民（以及其他原住民）的口述传统长期以来一直被讨论为基于历史知识的隐喻叙述的可靠性。我用故事探讨了这场辩论，以讨论 Corvidae 在土著知识传统中的作用的重要性，以及这些故事如何传达有关重要社会生态关系的信息。当代科学表明，在文化传统中重要的鸦科动物是人类的伴侣，也是这些民族居住地生态的重要组成部分。乌鸦、乌鸦、松鸦和喜鹊被认为具有特殊的角色，如合作者、变革推动者、骗子人物和重要的老师。加拿大（或灰）松鸦是 Woodland Cree 人 Wisakyjak 的骗子/创造者。喜鹊赢得了围绕黑山的伟大比赛，以确定人类是否会吃野牛，反之亦然。我从生态意义的角度分析这些故事，试图说明这些故事如何运用戏剧性的背景来鼓励尊重和修复人们社会文化记忆中的关系。