Woman Just Can't Shake Flock of Crows

B E L L E V U E, Wash., Nov. 15, 2003 -- — Years ago, school bus driver Phyllis Alverdes started feeding crows seeds and peanuts.

The birds got to know her and her car so well that now a flock follows her when she pulls into her parking space at work next to the school district bus lot. Dozens of crows come out of nowhere — even though Alverdes stopped feeding them two weeks ago.

They still want breakfast, and they want it now.

The crows may be smart, but they don't know the trouble Alverdes is in.

It turns out the crows like to peck insulation off of buses, and Alverdes was suspended from her job last week.

She's back on the job now after an investigation, although she has been directed not to park her crow-crowded car where the other bus drivers park.

‘Stop Following Me’

She's still afraid she'll lose her job because she just can't shake the crows.

"When I come to work every day, I don't know how I can be expected to suddenly have them stop following me," she told ABCNEWS affiliate KOMO-TV in Seattle.

She said she received a letter from the district directing her "to stop bringing them."

The district says her job is safe unless she starts feeding the crows again.

"She's back on the job," Ann Oxrieder, spokeswoman for the Bellevue School District, told KOMO-TV. "She must be parking where she was asked to. The crow problem must be alleviated. So I think that's it."

Alverdes would like to forget this nightmare. Even better, she'd like the crows to forget her.

"I'm going to be 61 years old next month," she said. "Why in the world would I put my job at risk for that … if I had a reasonable chance not to?"