Board Thread:General Discussion/@comment-26099499-20150226151824/@comment-4010415-20150917195045

I personally think Qrow's Semblance (whatever it is) may allow him to spy very easily. That's how he knew that Yang and Ruby were in trouble in the flashback. In No Brakes, he might have even contacted Raven to tell her Yang was in danger because he knew that, with her portals, Raven would get there much faster than anyone else.

The big mystery here is: What is his Semblance?!

It apparently might have something to do with birds. In the volume 2 director's commentary, they said that the sound of birds' wings flapping when Qrow showed up in the flashback is important. The Red, Black, and Yellow Trailers each had a crow in them. It makes sense that Qrow would keep an eye on his nieces, and we know that he has been keeping an eye on what's been going on in the underground, including with the White Fang.