SINGAPORE – A crow tried to peck and claw at a pair of young siblings near a wet market in Marine Parade on Sunday morning, as their mother was making a grocery run.

The bird attacked the boys – aged two and five – at an open-air space between 50A Marine Terrace Market and Block 59 at around 11am, said their mother, Ms Ariffah Ja’afar.

The crow went for the boys’ heads, but they were not injured, Ms Ariffah added.

She was at the market buying groceries with her five children, aged between 15 months and eight years, when three of them encountered the crow outside the market.

The 39-year-old Grab delivery rider told The Straits Times that the bird swooped in on her five-year-old first. It then turned to her two-year-old son and tried to strike his head with its beak and talons.

“The crow was aggressive. We tried to move it away, but it did not move away, and still wanted to attack,” she said.

The mother added that the bird lunged at the younger boy two or three times. The boy was traumatised and cried during the attack, which lasted a few seconds, she said.

Her seven-year-old daughter, who was with her two brothers at the open-air space at that time, was spared.

Ms Ariffah said although she has lived in the area for seven or eight years, this is the first time she has witnessed a crow assault there.

But it may not be the first to have occurred there. “I heard from some people that one auntie was also suddenly attacked by a crow yesterday,” said Ms Ariffah.

The mother of five usually goes to the Marine Terrace Market three or four times weekly.

Mr Mohammad Adbullah, 53, who sells cooked food at the food centre attached to the market, told ST he noticed that the number of crows in the area has been increasing over the years.

He said: “There are a lot of crows near blocks 55 and 59, and also at the carpark between blocks 51 and 52.”

But he pointed out that the crows do not come for leftover food at the food centre, and it is usually the pigeons that do so.

Mr Mohammad has not witnessed any crow attack so far. He started his business at the food centre less than two months ago, but has been living in Marine Terrace for more than 10 years.

Several cases of crows targeting humans have been reported around Singapore this year, such as in Orchard in October and Bishan in February.

These cases have prompted the National Parks Board (NParks) to remove crows’ nests in these areas to prevent further attacks.

ST has reached out to NParks for comment.

This article was first published in The Straits Times. Permission required for reproduction.