What is a Raven?

Few birds have captured the imaginations of as many people as ravens. They are smart, crafty, full of character, and, especially in the northern hemisphere, often considered a bit spooky. In his great book on Common Ravens, Mind of the Raven, Bernd Heinrich quotes Mark Pavelka of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service:

With other animals you can usually throw out 90 percent of the stories you hear about them as exaggerations. With ravens, it’s the opposite. No matter how strange or amazing the story, chances are pretty good that at least some raven somewhere actually did that.

Ravens capture our imagination not because they are big birds, not because they are (often) black birds, but because they, more than most birds, are individuals with individual minds. Watching a raven is remarkably similar to people-watching. You just never know what might happen. They are thinking, they are figuring things out, and they are far more fascinating than almost any other species. It is this similarity to humans that makes them so fascinating. They can also, like humans, be extremely ruthless.

The cultural weight of ravens is heavy. Virtually every culture that has come into contact with them has either revered or reviled them. One of the greatest poems ever written, Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Raven,” would have had much less impact if he had used a parrot instead. (Which, believe it or not, he considered.)

In addition to being the national bird of Bhutan, featuring on many Viking battle-standards, and being an integral part of the mythologies of many peoples (including quite a few mentions in the bible), the raven has also, in recent times, become associated with the National Football League’s Baltimore Ravens, who will be playing in Super Bowl XLVII in a little over a week. Will the Baltimore Ravens live up to the legacy of their namesake? Their logo (at left) certainly doesn’t live up to the economy of style that actual ravens possess.

There are lots of reasons to love ravens, as Liza Lee Miller will attest. Discussions about ravens in Europe and the United States naturally assume the Northern or Common Raven, but Corvus corax is not the only raven in the roost. Along the border of the U.S. and Mexico, for example, soars the Chihuahuan Raven (Corvus cryptoleucus), once known as the American White-necked Raven. This bird far exceeds the size of a Chihuahua.

Common Raven in Alberta, Canada by Dan Arndt

Little Raven with a big lunch in Gippsland, Australia by Duncan Fraser

Australia enjoys an abundance of ravens with the Forest Raven (Corvus tasmanicus), Little Raven (Corvus mellori), and of course Australian Raven (Corvus coronoides). Marj K. has some excellent advice on separating the various ravens and crows down under (as well as the origin of the phrase “Stone the crows!”)

Australian Raven by Marj K.

Africa, however, leads the world total with four of the nine known species of raven. Visit Africa and the Middle East to encounter characterful corvids like White-necked Raven (Corvus albicollis), Thick-billed Raven (Corvus crassirostris), Brown-necked Raven (Corvus ruficollis), and Fan-tailed Raven (Corvus rhipidurus).

The distinction between ravens and crows, both members of the genus Corvidae, is difficult to discern. Some ravens are as small as crows and all are as black. This has lead to various misnomers like calling the Hawaiian Crow, now tragically extinct in the wild, the Sacred Raven.

And though Super Bowl XLVII didn’t turn out to be the Bird Bowl some were hoping for, Andy Gibb has some insights from the field about who would win in a raven-falcon fracas!

A Northern Raven nest in Queens, NY by Corey Finger

When all is said and done, the raven — any raven — may be the coolest bird you ever see. As Clare Kines, a man who goes many cold months at a time without seeing any birds other than ravens, has said, “How can you not love a bird that plays?”

Common/Northern Raven
Common Ravens of Lassen Volcanic National Park – Larry Jordan, The Birder’s Report
Ravens preening in Sedona, Arizona – Vanessa Mickan, Bird Life
Ravens at Cotswold Water Park – Andy Gibb, Pokerbird
Ravens I have Known and Loved – Liza Lee Miller
The Raven – Corey Finger, 10,000 Birds
Edgar Allen Poe’s “The Raven” – Corey Finger, 10,000 Birds
Ravens Hunting in the Arctic – Clare Kines, 10,000 Birds
Ravens Thriving in the Arctic – Clare Kines, 10,000 Birds