Common Raven

Pair of Common Ravens.

NPS/Neal Herbert

 

Corvus corax
Family: Corvidae

Here is the greatest character in the boreal forest, a judgement that may well transcend all cultural predisposition. What the raven has is a gift of cleverness and a potent ego, combined with audacious wit. – Richard Nelson, Make Prayers to the Raven

The largest bodied songbird and one of Alaska’s most ubiquitous and conspicuous birds, the Common Raven is well known for its intelligence, adaptability, and raucous nature. Its loud and sometimes whimsical vocalizations as well as aerobatic antics make this ebony bird hard to ignore. Cleverness and curiosity have no doubt earned ravens a place in the folklore of many cultures worldwide. In the mythology of many Alaska Native cultures, the Great Raven created the universe and commands respect. However, as much deference as Raven receives, he is also considered a great trickster. Koyukon Athabascan people call the Great Raven, Dotson’sa and Tlingit people of Southeast Alaska who define their ancestral lineage by the Raven or Eagle clan. In Alaska, no matter where you go, chances are good you will meet someone who has a story to tell about ravens.

 

Species Profile

Breeding habitat: Nests in trees, on cliffs, and on human infrastructure. Where suitable nest substrates do not exist, like the treeless and mostly cliff less tundra of the Arctic Coastal Plain, raven nests are found only on human infrastructure, as is very evident in Alaska’s North Slope oil fields.

Where to find in the park: Ravens can be found virtually anywhere in Gates of the Arctic.

Migration: Year-round resident

Behavior: Displays diverse, inventive and comic behaviors: sliding down inclines on belly, dropping and catching objects while in flight, hanging upside down by one or two feet, snow “bathing,”, playing “tug-of-war” or “king-of-the-hill” with other ravens, pecking and pulling on the tails of predators like eagles and wolf pups.

Interesting Fact: Common Ravens have demonstrated instinct, learning, and insight in multiple types of intelligence tests that rank their intelligence as high as Great Apes and dolphins.

Conservation and Management: Common across their range and locally abundant in many places. In many places where their populations have increased, often in association with subsidies (food, water, and nest substrates) provided by humans, they represent a concern as predators of several Threatened or Endangered animals. As contradictory as perceptions are of ravens, so too are conservation activities—in some regions of the US the focus is on restoring extirpated populations, while in others it is to reduce an overabundance of ravens. Various measures, some controversial, have been taken to manage ravens where they are implicated in the decline of other animals.

 

Common Raven abundance in North America.

Fink, D., T. Auer, A. Johnston, M. Strimas-Mackey, O. Robinson, S. Ligocki, W. Hochachka, C. Wood, I. Davies, M. Iliff, L. Seitz. 2020. eBird Status and Trends, Data Version: 2019; Released: 2020. Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, New York.

 

Media

Audio

More Information

https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Common_Raven/
https://corvidresearch.blog/http://corvidcorner.com/

References

Backensto, S. A. (2010). Common ravens in Alaska's North Slope oil fields: an integrated study using local knowledge and science (M.Sc.Thesis, University of Alaska Fairbanks).

Boarman, W. I. and B. Heinrich (2020). Common Raven (Corvus corax), version 1.0. In Birds of the World (S. M. Billerman, Editor). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA. https://doi-org.arlis.idm.oclc.org/10.2173/bow.comrav.01

Tlingit & Haida - About Us - History (ccthita.org)

Nelson, R. K. (1983). Make prayers to the raven: A Koyukon view of the northern forest. University of Chicago Press.

 

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