ILE DES CHENES -- A crow with a special skill has become the talk of the barn at the Wildlife Haven Rehabilitation Centre.

Jet, an American Crow, was brought to the centre four years ago as a fledgling with a fractured wing.

The centre usually releases animals but in Jet’s case the injured wing means he can only fly short distances and he was never released back into the wild.

Jet stayed at Wildlife Haven and staff started training him as an “education ambassador.”

“He liked being around people. That’s kind of why we decided he would be appropriate to join our education team,” said Rehabilitation Coordinator Tiffany Lui.

Since becoming a full-time resident, Jet started doing something no one expected.

“The talking was actually a surprise. Nobody actually taught him to talk,” Lui said.

Last winter, Lui was working in the barn when she heard voices.

“I first thought it was people outside waiting for me to come bring an animal or something but I realized after a while it was actually coming from his room.”

That was the first time she heard Jet talk.

“He’d just say ‘Hello’ every once in a while.”

This winter, the centre brought in an expert who works with parrots to train Jet even more.

“He is rather shy and nervous around new people in new environments, new items. We’re hoping with this new lady who’s worked with parrots and dealt with training and behavior modifications with parrots we might be able to find some more information on how best to train Jet,” Lui said.

Staff have also heard Jet say, “Who’s out there?”

Lui said the bird also sometimes laughs like a human.

Lui said Jet’s voice is very feminine. She thinks he mimics the voice of one of the centre’s regular volunteers.

“I find Jet speaks very clearly so you can actually hear him saying ‘Hello’ and ‘Who’s out there?’ which is very unique,” Lui said.

“Crows – they’re part of the corvid family and they’re very intelligent birds. So being able to imitate is not out of their realm.”