A raven (Corvus corax) is a big black bird. It is also called the common raven or the northern raven. It is similar to a crow, but bigger. It and the thick-billed raven are the two largest birds in the crow family, and perhaps the heaviest perching birds.
Ravens have lived near humans for thousands of years. In some areas, people consider ravens to be pests.
Ravens are omnivores. They eat carrion, fruit, small animals, and trash.
Ravens are the subject of much mythology from around the world.
Scientific name
In 1758, Carl Linnaeus gave ravens the scientific nameCorvus corax. Corvus means "raven" in Latin. Corax is the Greek word κόραξ written in English. It means "raven" or "crow" in Greek.
Appearance
An adult raven is between 54 and 71cm (21 and 28in) long. An adult raven's wingspan is 116 to 153cm (46 to 60in). Ravens are the heaviest perching birds. An adult raven weighs 0.69 to 2.250kg (1.52 to 4.96lb). Recorded weights range from 0.69 to 2.250kg (1.52 to 4.96lb), Usually, ravens from cold areas are larger than ravens from warm areas.
Ravens have black feathers. The throat feathers are long and pointy. Adult ravens have brown eyes. Juveniles have bluish-gray eyes.
Ravens and crows look similar. However, there are several ways to tell them apart. Ravens are larger than crows. Ravens have a pointy tail, and crows have a rounded tail. Ravens do not flap their wings as much as crows when flying.
Where they live
Ravens can live in a variety of environments. They live in North America, Europe, Asia, and northern Africa. Ravens prefer to live in forests with open land nearby. Many ravens live by the coast.
Behavior
Ravens usually travel in pairs. These pairs are two birds that have mated with each other.
Ravens eat many things. They eat carrion, small animals, fruit, seeds, eggs, and trash. Animals that ravens eat include mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, and insects. Ravens often hide food where other animals cannot find it.
Some ravens live near wolves. Sometimes, ravens steal food from wolves. Sometimes, ravens help wolves locate prey animals including deer. When wolves kill and eat deer, ravens eat some of the deer's meat. This is an example of symbiosis.
Ravens are very smart birds. They can quickly learn how to solve problems. By the age of four, ravens can score as well as apes at cognitive tests.
Ravens and humans
Ravens prefer to live in forests or farmland, rather than cities.
Some farmers consider ravens to be pests. This is because ravens sometimes eat crops and injure young farm animals.
In the Mojave Desert, the population of ravens has increased in the past 25 years. This is because towns in the region have gotten bigger, and people have produced more trash. Because there are more ravens, scientists worry that ravens are eating desert tortoises more often.
Ravens sometimes get infected with West Nile Virus (WNV). However, this is rare. Mosquitoes sometimes bite infected ravens, and then bite humans. This can infect humans with WNV.
Ravens are the subject of many myths and stories from around the world. In Europe, ravens have traditionally been considered omens of evil or death. In Haida and Tlingit cultures, the creator god is a raven. In Norse mythology, two ravens named Huginn and Muninn fly around the world and bring Odin information. In the Qur'an, a raven sent by Allah shows Cain how to hide Abel's corpse.
↑Svensson, Lars; Mullarney, Killian; Zetterström, Dan (2015). Le guide ornitho: le guide le plus complet des oiseaux d'Europe, d'Afrique du Nord et du Moyen-Orient[The birding guide: The most comprehensive guide of birds from Europe, North Africa and the Middle East]. French: Éditions Delachaux et Niestlé.
↑"Raven". British Garden Birds. Retrieved 2012-12-19.
↑Boarman, William I.; Heinrich, Bernd (1999). Poole, A.; Gill, F. (eds.). "Common Raven (Corvus corax)". Birds of North America. 476: 1–32. doi:10.2173/bna.476.
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