Once upon a time, people did not even know what animals were stupid, because animals hunted, flew, swam and ran. better than a man. That is, bypassed him on all counts. True, they did not know how (or did not want to) talk to us, but our ancestors, on the contrary, explained the silence of the animals with their exceptional mind. In addition, some animals seemed to acquire human speech, if they really needed it - such things are often told in legends. Therefore, our ancestors were sure that animals are just as perfect as humans, and even more perfect, because they have tails, wings, hooves and divine wisdom.

There were even those who were smarter than the gods. And the gods were often quite bestial. Everyone knows how the snake deceived Yahweh, the hare - the lord of the underground kingdom of Yanlo, and Athena did not go anywhere without her owl, which was the wisest of all the Olympic pantheon. And the poet, murderer, supreme ace Odin, for example, would have been an ordinary sclerotic, if it were not for the crows Hugin and Munin - Reason and Memory, who supplied the god with the missing intellectual abilities. Not a single ancient Scandinavian would have dared to throw a stone at a black bird, since everyone knew what it was. The best way truly upset the one-eyed deity.

Over time, people still began to guess that the non-human mind of animals is very inferior to the human. Already in the Bible there are passages about unreasonable creatures, which were originally created for complete subordination to man in order to become his servants, helpers, friends, dinners and new leather shoes.

And for more than two thousand years, this idea has become so firmly entrenched in our minds that when late XIX- at the beginning of the 20th century, the first cautious information appeared that animals ... ahem ... as if, in general, also not quite complete idiots, this news was received by the public, even quite scientific, with hostility. Excuse me, but how can you compare? Man is the crown of creation, the measure of all things, the one and only bearer of reason, while animals have no reason, solid instincts, they are just machines in their own way. Otherwise, how would we eat them and ride them - on intelligent, feeling and thinking beings?! That is, all the same songs were heard that a few decades earlier were heard from the slave-owning regions, where the opinion that black people were much, much dumber than white people dominated. And, if you look, not even quite people, but, as it were, almost animals.

And until now, despite the nature protection funds, vegetarianism and other love for our smaller brothers, we refuse to admit that some animals have almost the same complex device consciousness that we are (even if this consciousness works differently). After all, this recognition would entail such ethical chaos, such a bundle of problems - social, moral, economic, and in general any, that it is easier to continue to consider any dolphin a stupid fish, and at the sight of a chimpanzee mastering the alphabet of the deaf and dumb, shrug your shoulders and mutter something then about the miracles of training.

But sometimes, in not the most serious publications (like ours), is it possible to tell the truth on the sly, in a whisper? Well, we won’t undermine world civilization if we write a small article about the fact that corvids are very smart birds that are not inferior to a child of 3-4 years old in intelligence and emotionality, and in some other parameters they noticeably surpass even adult Homo sapiens?

The most famous corvids

Crow

A large creature: a wingspan of up to one and a half meters, and a weight of under two kilograms. The smartest bird in the world and possibly an animal, if you don't count primates. It can live both near a person and on its own. Sung by the writer Edgar Allan Poe in the poem "The Raven".

Crows gray and black

One of the most common birds in the world. Absolute synanthropes: they live only next to a person and wherever there is a person (not counting conditions that are completely unsuitable for her, such as deserts - both hot and cold). Sung by the poet Ivan Krylov in the fable "The Crow and the Fox".

Magpie

All corvids love to carry things from people, but it was the magpie that became the most famous kleptomaniac: absolutely incredible things were found in its nests - from precious jewelry to sheets from stolen candidate dissertations. It was sung by the people, for example, in the counting rhyme "Forty-white-sided".

Rook

A serious nosy character, solid, businesslike and not prone to stupid antics. He lives more often in villages, where he helps the peasants, picking out the larvae of harmful insects from arable land (however, useful ones too). Likes to winter in the south. It was sung by the artist Alexei Savrasov in the painting "The Rooks Have Arrived".

Jackdaw

Small compared to other corvids with a small beak and a gray neck. He constantly runs after rooks, hiding among their massive carcasses from predators and eating up the remains of nuts and acorns torn apart by rooks (near the very nose, hard nuts have not grown up to crack). The galchonok was sung by Uspensky in "Prostokvashino" ("Who's there? Who's there?").

Jay

The most unintelligent of the corvids. Lives most often in forests, sometimes far from human habitation. Prefers plant foods: nuts and seeds. Although the sausage offered by you, too, will not refuse. Knows how and loves to imitate the voices of birds, as well as human speech. If they have been shouting at you from the sky for two hours already: “Senya, go home, your mother!” - it's probably the jay mocking you. It was sung by director Evgeny Ginzburg in the film "The Wedding of the Jays".

Crows vs Elephants

A few years ago, under the auspices of the Animal Planet channel, a rating of the most intelligent animals in the world was compiled. A dozen universities, anthropological and zoological societies, laboratories of evolutionary psychologists and ethologists participated in the ranking - in general, the jury is very respectable. In the first place, as expected, were primates, in second - more or less deservedly dolphins. But on the third after long and heated disputes, heavily puffing, climbed the elephants, pushing the contenders for whom the scientists voted from the prize-winning place. But the television people were really rooting for the elephants.

Because the elephant is the same thing! People love elephants. Elephants are cool! Elephants must be protected, wonderful programs should be made about them.

And about those who were illegally and scandalously ousted from the pedestal, you can’t shoot much. They are too well known to people, no exotic: there are heaps of these intellectuals in any garbage heap.

Therefore, the corvids in the ranking were in fourth place, and even in the company of parrots for some reason, although between an ordinary raven and some budgerigar the intellectual difference will be more than that of the members of the jury with pig-tailed macaques *.

How crows are friends with humans

A unique feature of corvids is that most of their species are absolute synanthropes. The gray and black crows were especially distinguished here: in general, they practically do not occur further than a few kilometers from human habitation. True, there are cases when people saw crows in the remote taiga, but only for the reason that young crows sometimes tie up with geological and other expeditions and can accompany a detachment walking or riding horses or boats for weeks and even months. Yes, of course, the crows are very interested in our garbage dumps and landfills. And human houses can also be used to build nests, although even very urban crows still prefer to make nests in trees. Besides birds of prey usually not near a person (although cats, if you look, are almost as malicious, and there have always been plenty of them around people).

But all this is not, most likely, the main reason. The fact is that, according to the observations of Konrad Lorenz, the famous ethologist, crows spend a large part of their day watching us. Let us remind you that the vision of crows is excellent: a hundred meters for them is a close and well-visible distance. The curiosity of these birds is enormous, and our life for them is an infinitely varied show, also with prizes in the form of sausage cores pouring into the trash. Ravens perfectly distinguish and remember people, even distinguish their voices, they are quite vindictive, but at the same time they are good at reading the mood and intentions of a person. So these birds cannot imagine life without us. Yes, we can be dangerous, but at the same time we are their breadwinners, protectors and clowns. It is not surprising that corvids are one of the most easily tamed animals, and often the first to take a step towards a person: weakened, sick or very young birds often come to human housing for help.

How a man is friends with crows

The time when ravens were worshiped as "infernal mediators of the other world" (quote from one very scientific article about the raven), long gone. Among the Greeks and Romans, the raven was the sacred bird of Apollo, in Scandinavia, as already mentioned, Odin's satellite, the Slavs considered him to be a bird and made predictions on the "raven's gray". With the advent of Christianity, all this reverence, of course, came back to haunt the bird: it began to be considered a servant of the devil (and who else were all these Odins and Apollos from the point of view of Christians?). The habit of large ravens to feed on the battlefields with the bodies of the fallen, and on the gallows with the corpses of the executed, was also considered disgusting, although, to the credit of the ravens, we note that, in fact, they did not arrange battles and put together the gallows, they only removed as best they could, preventing, among other things the spread of epidemics.

However, sometimes ravens were revered even in Christian countries. In the Tower of London, for example, ravens, which are considered symbols of the British crown, still live without fail, a special budget is even allocated for their food. But with the advent of firearms, the crows had to massively move from villages and villages to cities, as the villagers liked to hang the corpses of shot birds, their relatives, around fields and gardens. Such a spectacle of crows - social, intelligent and emotional animals - frightens and shocks. Although the crows did not cause much damage to the fields and gardens - well, they ran around the beds, played, pulled out beets and rutabaga by their tails ... They could steal an egg from a chicken coop or a chicken, it was such a sin. But crows could not be called real pests of crops, and the abundance of their corpses on crosses in the fields was mainly due to the fact that it was fun and easy to shoot a large crow accustomed to humans. In the XVIII-XIX centuries, the active settlement of cities by ravens began. Here, no one really shot at them, garbage heaps were heaped up by mountains, life was more interesting and eventful. And until now, most of the crows of the world are city dwellers, inhabitants of large cities. In Moscow, for example, a few years ago the population of gray crows was 300-350 thousand. Ever since the city authorities and incredibly intensified for last years Crowhunters took to fighting the crows, their number fell at least 3-4 times. In some districts of Moscow, for example in Central, the crow has now become a rare beast.

See for yourself what crows can do and decide whether it was fair to trample them with elephants?

01. Ravens recognize themselves in the mirror

That is, they do not just see their reflection and react to it with screams or do not notice point-blank - even dogs are capable of this. Ravens understand what it is, look around themselves (and not without pleasure), remove all sorts of fluff from themselves, using reflection. Elephants do nothing of the sort. But primates - chimpanzees, gorillas and orangutans - also like to show off in front of the mirror, perfectly aware of who is grimacing at them in response.

02. Crows have their own language

Not just alarms or something like that, but real language, which includes several hundred words at least. The Konrad Lorenz Austrian Center for the Study of Crows reports 250-300 separate well-established signals, recognizing that the data is incomplete, since some of the sounds uttered by ravens are not recorded by our ears, and registering sounds on various devices is very difficult to decipher. Moreover, crows have dialects that vary from locality to locality, and a crow, say, a Chinese one, will not understand a word of what a crow, for example, a Spanish one, says to it. Ethologists are absolutely sure that crows communicate in quite detailed sentences: “A man in blue feathers is walking behind large trees and holding a loud stick - who can save yourself!” And the fact that biologists still do not know how to understand the language of crows at all (as well as the language of monkeys and dolphins, by the way), does not speak in favor of the intellect of Homo sapiens. After all, crows and monkeys are perfectly trained to parse the words of human speech and understand some of them.

03. Crows count to ten

This is confirmed by the experiments of the Biocenter at Moscow State University. The crows were offered to choose food from different boxes, and the crows unmistakably chose the box on the lid of which there were more marks than the rest: not five or seven, for example, but nine; not two or three, but five. For it was in boxes with a large number of marks that they were always served food.

04. Ravens model the behavior of other people and animals

For example, jays (also corvids, as we remember) like to hide acorns and nuts in hiding places. The vision of corvids is excellent, much better than human, so a jay hiding an acorn always looks around anxiously - is there another jay following it from somewhere? And if secret surveillance is noticed, then the jay leaves the acorn in the hiding place and flies aside. It waits for the observing jay to fly away, and then rushes back to the hiding place, grabs an acorn and flies to hide it in another, unlit place. That is, it builds a complex model of the opponent's probable actions (it can fly in when the owner is not there and embarrass the stash) and gives him false information about his intentions.

05. Crows use tools

Even worse, they make tools. Even worse, they make tools to obtain other tools, which, according to many anthropological characteristics, indicates the presence of a full-fledged mind! The experiment in which a raven connects two sticks to push a long hook out of a slit, with which he will fish out a treat from a jug, was carried out at the University of Cambridge, repeated and recorded by New Zealanders and Austrians. Moreover, if the Austrians and the British worked with the crows, the New Zealanders successfully repeated the task with the Caledonian black crows.

06. Crows determine the physical properties of objects and understand the operation of some physical laws

At the same University of Cambridge, the crows quickly guessed how to get the key they needed to open the box with the feeder from a narrow and deep vessel of water. They threw stones at the adjacent vessel until a key, tied to a rubber tag, floated to the top, rising with the level of the liquid in both vessels. Moreover, when the scientists threw several stone-like pieces of cork and rubber onto the area with stones, the crows, poking a fake with their beak, lost interest in it, because they immediately realized that this load would not help them: too light, it would float on top.

07. Crows play half of their free time

Even adults. Even very old ones. The list of games loved by these birds is huge: they ride from hills and domes of churches (sometimes even using cardboard or, for example, can lids); tease dogs and cats, pretending to be lame or injured, while a partner sneaks up behind and pecks at the victim's tail; they pull branches and papers that they absolutely do not need from each other, rustle packages, roll bottle caps on the asphalt, splash water, dance, swing on branches and perform other acrobatic exercises, drag all sorts of small things out of windows, mimic people's voices, throw them at us from above small pebbles (hit - missed) ... There is a known case with deputies of the Legislative Assembly Sverdlovsk region in 2012: after a rock garden was arranged on the roof of the parliament building, local crows gathered in a large flock and fired at the parked cars of deputies with these stones, breaking several windows and damaging the hoods. The crows were clearly amused by the sight of the drivers and officials rushing around the cars and impotently shaking their fists at the sky. In a word, crows perform a lot of unnecessary for survival, but extremely exciting actions. At the same time, unlike, for example, domestic dogs, crows are forced to take care of themselves; life is rather cruel to them and, it would seem, leaves no time for nonsense.

08. Crows understand the operation of mechanisms, transport, city services

For example, in Moscow, at the Rizhsky railway station, half a century ago, biologists noticed that the crows perfectly learned the schedule of suburban trains and learned to fly up to the platform just when the train was approaching the platform. Birds quickly flew into all the vestibules in turn, looking for scraps thrown by the passengers of the last flight. Moreover, sparrows and pigeons living there have learned the habits of crows, and to this day, bird patrols regularly fly over trains.

09. Crows have the highest level of socialization

Every morning at about the same time, the cities of the planet resound with croaking. These are crows who have awakened and already had time to eat and begin to loudly discuss their plans for the day with all the companions in the district. The din lasts about half an hour or an hour, after which the morning roll call stops, the birds fly away on their own business: young people - in flocks, families - in pairs, outcasts and independents - in splendid isolation. In the evening, about an hour before sunset, the event is repeated. No group of researchers has yet been able to decipher the crow language, we can only guess what information the birds give each other. It is only known that the appearance of new dumps, large carrion or brigades for the destruction of birds becomes immediately known to all groups of crows in the area.

Why are the crowhunters and the authorities fighting the crows?

The first - out of malice, the second - out of stupidity. But all this, of course, is explained by exceptionally good goals. For example, such.

Crows are carriers of infection
Lies. The crow is a professional scavenger with concentrated stomach acid, high body temperature, and resistance to a vast number of infections. It is from her that a person practically does not have a chance to pick up an infection. Moreover, by exterminating dead birds of other species, as well as the carcasses of mice and rats, crows prevent the spread of many infections.

Crows destroy other bird nests, including rare ones: robins, titmouses, robins, buntings, etc.
Partly a lie. Yes, all corvids love to eat eggs and sometimes steal chicks from nests. But it is robins, oatmeal and other rare trifles that they rarely come across. The menu of corvids mainly includes pigeon and sparrow clutches, since there are many of them and they are located in places convenient for crows: drains, chimneys, etc. But forest birds prefer to nest in thorny dense bushes and other corners that are hard to reach for crows . And just the destruction of such thickets and the general reduction of wastelands, trees and bushes is the main reason for the disappearance of many species of birds from cities.

Crows pollute buildings- municipalities go broke on painting and whitewashing. And what do they turn cars into!
Lies. Crows leave most of their droppings under their nests, which they build in trees (you definitely shouldn’t park your car there). The crow, the only bird, can be taught to use the toilet - precisely because the bird knows how to control this process, tries not to dirty it in its nest, and usually empties its intestines when flying out and flying into it. But people like to justify themselves. Not a single resource of crowhunters, where the brave exterminators of the “gray bastards” gather, can honestly admit that I am, they say, a sadistic bastard who enjoys watching how an almost rational creature flutters, suffers and dies, which did nothing wrong to me and which could not protect me in any way. No, the crowhunters really want to believe that they are good fellows and heroes saving humanity from croaking evil.

And all because the mind can be very, very different. And sometimes it manifests itself in such a way that it is difficult to guess about its presence.

Text: Danila Maslov

Origin of the species and description

The raven is the largest member of the corvid family. This family is one of the representatives of the numerous order Passeriformes. The voice of the raven is loud and sharp, with a characteristic vibration. In addition to the well-recognized croaking and croaking, the bird can make separate, rather complex sounds and even imitate other voices. The origin of the name raven has its origins in the word crow, which means black. There are many legends associated with the acquisition of a raven of such a gloomy color.

The raven is undoubtedly one of the most ancient creatures on earth. It is difficult to find another such bird, which would be dedicated to such a number of legends and mystical traditions as a crow. He was worshiped and feared by American Indians, harsh Scandinavians, African tribes and peoples of the north. There are multiple references to the raven in ancient manuscripts.

So the cuneiform, dated to the 3rd century BC, tells of a wanderer who escaped on a ship during the universal flood. According to legend, he released a raven, a dove and a swallow from his ship so that they could find land and food. Of all the birds, only the raven managed to find land. The intelligence of a raven is a long-known and indisputable fact.

Appearance and features

The raven is a bird that everyone has seen and heard. But not everyone will be able to distinguish a real raven from relatives close to him. Those who are often mistaken for a crow actually turn out to be a rook or a crow. It is not at all difficult to distinguish a real raven, just look closely. The raven is a large bird, the body length can reach 70 cm. The wing length is up to 47 cm. In a state of wingspan, the wings can reach up to 140 cm. Females are somewhat smaller than males, but in addition to size, external signs practically indistinguishable. The beak is sharp, massive and very large.

Video: Raven

Another one distinguishing feature crow pointed, ruffled feathers on the throat in the form of a "beard", which is especially pronounced during the "singing" of the bird. An adult raven has a completely black color, with a bluish tint. The wings of the raven are long and narrowed, the tail is wedge-shaped. The claws of the bird are powerful, sharp, completely black. The bird in flight can also be distinguished, the flapping of the wings is rarer than that of other closely related representatives. The way a raven flies is admirable, it can soar for a long time in the sky like an eagle.

The life expectancy of ravens in nature is up to 15 years. In captivity, where there is a complete absence of external enemies and stable nutrition, the duration increases to 40-50 years.

Interesting fact: In London, on the territory of the Tower Castle, ravens are in the official service of His Royal Majesty, where they are under the strictest protection.

Where does the raven live?

Due to its unpretentiousness to food and climate, the crow can be found anywhere. It can be the Arctic coast and even the tundra. On the northern ridge, it is more common on rocky seashores and in vegetated river valleys. In the middle lane, it prefers wooded areas with broad-leaved or coniferous forests. Edges with open areas near water bodies and swampy places. Crows try to avoid continuous taiga massifs. Closer to the southern latitudes, the bird settles more readily in hilly areas, does not bypass island and floodplain forests in the middle of the steppes.

If earlier it was believed that the raven avoids proximity to humans, then since the middle of the last century there has been a steady tendency for the bird to move closer and closer to human habitation. In the northwestern territory of Russia, birds began to actively build nests in the suburbs. Including such a large metropolis as St. Petersburg, where they have not been seen before. The raven began to pay much less attention to the person, although he was always careful with him. Cases of nesting on high-rise buildings in large cities have become frequent.

Most often, the raven moves closer to the person with the onset of winter. Due to the high snow cover and the decrease in the number of active animals, it becomes more difficult to get food in nature. In the city, crows can often be found at dumpster locations.

What does a raven eat?

The raven is an omnivorous bird, it is often called the orderly of nature, and so it is. The crow is also called a scavenger. Yes, a bird eats dead animals with pleasure, but at the same time only fresh meat, a rotten animal is unlikely to interest it. It is not averse to hunting for any small game itself, while it can hang for a long time, hovering in the air. The sight of a raven is quite sharp and, having chosen a victim, he rushes at her like a falcon.

Raven prey in the wild is usually:

• lizards;
• frogs;
• chicks of other birds;
• large beetles and larvae.

Gets from him and poultry, for this he is very disliked by the villagers. If a raven finds someone else's clutch with eggs or chicks, they will not be in trouble. In addition to all living creatures, the bird gladly consumes plant foods: cereals, fruit crops. So the gardens also get it. The raven is an amazingly intelligent and observant bird, and will never risk himself in vain. He can watch the object of hunting or competitors for a long time, and after waiting for the right moment to pick up his prey.

At the same time, the crow cannot be called a greedy bird. Very often, having found a fallen animal, the raven convenes its relatives, while the size of the prey does not really matter. Ravens often hide the remnants of food by burying them in reserve. Burying and digging is one of the raven's favorite pastimes.

Features of character and lifestyle

The raven is one of the smartest living creatures on earth. It is noticed that before doing something, the raven quite accurately assesses the situation. And it works as useful as possible, excluding unnecessary movements. Scientists have repeatedly studied the mental abilities of birds. Experiments on intelligence led them to the conclusion that the raven has intelligence. It turned out that the bird quickly orients itself in the proposed complicated situation. An experiment conducted by ornithologists is well described.

The essence of the experience was as follows. The crow was offered a rather narrow transparent vessel with water, where a delicacy in the form of worms floated. Stone pebbles were laid out nearby. The raven, which could not reach the worm, quickly realized that it was possible to throw pebbles into the water, thereby raising the water level. In addition to the stones, there were other objects in the pile that did not sink in the water.

The raven thought of pulling them back so that they would not interfere. Thus, the bird quickly got to the delicacy. For the purity of the experiment, this experiment was repeated, and with other crows the result was the same. It has been noticed that the raven often uses improvised objects in order to get food.

The ability to wield auxiliary means is transmitted to young crows in the process of observing adults, so it cannot be called innate. The way the raven drinks also confirms his high intelligence. If most birds take water in their beaks and then raise their heads to make it glass, then the raven does otherwise. He puts his open beak on the water, while turning his head to one side, as a result, the water itself flows into the cavity, he can only swallow it.

Despite the outwardly serious appearance, the raven is a very playful bird. Young crows are very willing to play with various objects, hiding them after playing enough. Moreover, other animals can be involved as an object for their fun, while observing the necessary caution.

Social structure and reproduction

In its natural habitat, the raven is very faithful to its mate. In the second year of life, the raven reaches sexual maturity. Created couples maintain relationships for a long time. The mating season of ravens begins in winter in February. Mating is preceded by long flights over the object of one's desire. At the same time, crows do not just fly, but perform various complex aerobatics, demonstrating their abilities. Both partners participate in the construction of the nest, they build a dwelling, usually on a tall tree in a dense crown.

So - in other places inaccessible to enemies. The frame of the nest is made up of thicker branches that are intertwined. Large holes are braided with thinner branches, often clay is used as a building material. From the inside, a litter is equipped, which simultaneously serves as a heater. As a heater, any material suitable for this is used. It was noted that when choosing a litter, the crow takes into account the climatic features of the area. A crow's nest can be over one meter in diameter.

March is the time for laying eggs. The female crow lays from 2-6 eggs of a grayish-blue color with brown patches. The incubation period lasts from 20-23 days, and both partners often participate in this. The chicks that have appeared have an excellent appetite, both spouses also have to feed, but usually the male does this. When the chicks hatch, the weather, especially at night, is very cool. The female crow practically does not leave her chicks for the first days, continuing to warm them.

About 10 days after birth, young crows begin to learn to fly. First, flying to a neighboring branch, and at about 40 days of age, they already confidently take to the wing. Until the winter, they continue to live with their parents, adopting survival skills.

Interesting fact: Raven is very loyal to his brood. There are cases when even a wounded raven continued to hatch its offspring.

Natural enemies of ravens

The raven, in search of carrion, has to coexist with these predators, and if he loses attention, he himself can become their prey. As for the threats to the crow in the city, there are much fewer of them than in the wild. In an urban environment, the constant proximity of a person somewhat dulls the raven's caution to surrounding dangers. Stray dogs and even cats can take advantage of this factor. But such cases are quite rare, and this is another possible reason migration of ravens to the city limits. The most important enemy for the raven in a certain period of history was man.

Interesting fact: It has been noticed that throughout life, crows often continue to communicate with close relatives, flying to visit each other.

Population and species status

In the old days, especially in the 19th century, the raven was persecuted by humans. He was considered a symbol of misfortune and a harbinger of troubles, in addition to this, the raven was accused of destroying crops. All this led to the fact that they began to actively destroy the bird, including with the help of poisons. This caused a sharp decline in the population. Later, some European countries began to correct the situation by taking the raven under protection. Such measures have borne fruit, and the number of crows began to increase.

An obstacle to the increase in the crow population in some regions is difficult winter conditions, which make it difficult to forage. Assimilation by man of new territories, then leads to an increase in the population of the crow in this region. The explanation is simple: where there is a person, there will always be food waste. The classic black raven is widely known to all inhabitants of the European part. But the detachment of ravens is quite numerous and is not limited to this species only.

Depending on the geographical location, the following types of ravens are known:

• Antillean raven;
• New Koledonian Raven;
• White-billed raven;
• Gray raven;
• American Raven;
• piebald raven;
• Brilliant raven;
• Floresian raven;
• Cuban Raven;
• Cape raven;
• Giant raven;
• Pygmy Raven;
• Raven of Bismarck;
• Jamaican raven;
• Guam Raven;
• Desert Raven;
• Trumpeted raven;
• Palm raven.

Some of the above species of crows are distributed in a rather limited area and their populations are rather small. Others live more widely, but more often within the same continent. The classic black raven, the most adapted to any habitat, thanks to which we know it for what it is.

Raven Guard

To suggest that the raven is a rare and endangered bird species is quite difficult for some. On the territory of the Russian Federation, at this time, the common crow as a species is not threatened with extinction. Which cannot be said with certainty for some Western European countries.

In some countries, including Germany, the raven is under state protection and is listed in the local Red Book. Once upon a time there were plenty of ravens. But "thanks" to much of church politics based on superstition, the crow began to be actively destroyed. This led to the fact that most of the population of ravens in Western Europe was destroyed.

In the second half of the last century, ravens were taken under active protection. In the German Alps there are ornithological stations where the migration of ravens is monitored by ringing. For a more detailed study of the behavior of these extraordinary birds, some individuals are specially kept in spacious enclosures.

The data obtained helps in the work on maintaining and increasing the population of the raven in the natural environment. The way the Germans relate to wildlife, using the example of a bird that is not the rarest on earth, deserves all respect. All these measures are bearing fruit, and the number of crows there is gradually increasing.

We often do not notice those who surround our lives. Crow – amazing bird, the observation of which can bring a lot of positive emotions and discoveries. A bird that rightfully occupies the intellectual peak among birds. To understand this, it is enough to put aside your affairs and watch her. And it is possible that the raven will teach us something new. Like enjoying the simple things in life.

Just do not confuse two different types of birds - a raven and a crow. The raven is the largest representative of the corvid family and the passerine order (body weight up to 1.5 kg). Ignorant people often confuse a raven with a crow and a rook. Moreover, many believe that a raven and a crow are a female and a male of the same species. But it should be noted that such confusion occurs only in Russian because of the almost identical names of the two different types. In other languages, these birds have distinctly different names - for example, in English, the raven is raven, the crow is crow. The raven differs from the gray crow in its significantly larger size, pure black color, more massive beak and wedge-shaped tail. The rook is clearly distinguished from the raven and other corvids by the presence of a patch of unfeathered skin around the beak.

Unlike other corvids, it is a very cautious and distrustful bird, and never lets a person close to itself. It is almost impossible to meet him in the city. If the raven settles in the city, then in remote and hard-to-reach places - for example, on tall abandoned buildings.

The raven is a sedentary bird. It lives almost everywhere, with the exception of North Africa and North America, but is rare everywhere. Crows feed on mouse-like rodents, food waste, large insects, animal corpses, eggs and chicks of other species, and fish. They also eat plant foods - grains of cereals, seeds and fruits of various plants. They live alone or in pairs, couples often do not break up even in winter. In late January - early February, mating games begin, in late February - early March, they begin to build a nest in the crowns of tall trees, in coastal cliffs, rock ledges, power line supports, telegraph poles, towers. Both birds build a nest from thick branches mixed with clods of earth, bark, thin fresh twigs. Litter from dry stalks, wool, felt, pieces of cloth and cotton wool. In March, the female lays from 4 to 7 bluish eggs with brown spots. Incubation lasts three weeks. Only the female incubates and the male feeds her. The chicks hatch in early April and leave the nest in May. They stay with their parents who feed them for quite a long time - until autumn or even winter.

The myth of the long-lived crow was born out of the fidelity of an inseparable family of crows to the nesting place. When, many years later, another couple replaces the "old men", people simply don't notice it.

The fidelity of the raven inspires respect: if a male or female loses a pair, then he remains alone for life.

From an amazing aerial performance-dance begins and family life crows. Male and female rise high into the sky and, half-folded wings, together rapidly fall down. It seems that they will break, but strong wings unfold 50 meters from the ground and the flight-fall is replaced by a slow climb. Strict birds repeat air dancing again and again, and then retired to build a nest in a tall tree. Having laid the first egg, the female does not leave the nest for a minute, because the severe February frosts can kill the chick hidden under the shell. From this day until the coming of true spring sole breadwinner the whole family becomes the raven-father.
The raven perfectly knows how to soar in air whirlwinds, gain any height and even fly backwards without losing height and speed. The unusual ability to fly in an inverted position allows it to defend itself with strong clawed paws from flocks of gray crows and hawks attacking in the air.

Their excellent memory is also surprising: having hidden supplies somewhere, they never forget their location (unlike the same magpies, who, burying cones for the winter, immediately forget about them, as a result of which, after these actions, whole groves grow. ..).

The raven is talented at imitating the various sounds around it. Birds of this species sitting in cages cry to ravens flying by in crows, to rooks in rooks. And a raven living in captivity for a long time can also imitate human speech, while pronouncing the words clearly, without the lisp and tongue twister characteristic of parrots.

Since ancient times, people have considered ravens wise, and perhaps they were right. “The raven often shows a comprehension almost equal to that of a human, and whoever does not recognize the mind of animals, let him watch the raven a little longer,” said the famous zoologist Alfred Bram. And the famous researcher of animal behavior Konrad Lorenz wrote: "I am convinced that the raven is the most mentally developed compared to all other birds."

No wonder our Ancestors had a special respect for this noble bird.

RAVEN is a prophetic bird, a faithful companion of the God-Controller Varuna. He accompanies the Souls of the dead to the Gates of Vyriya in the Great Svarga the Most Pure and informs the Navyam Souls about what high goals they have achieved in their Spiritual and Soul development and in the fulfillment of Life Purpose. If God Varuna decides that a person needs to be given the opportunity to complete the started deed, which he did not have time to complete due to a sudden death, then he sends his assistant, Raven, to the Soul of the deceased person.

Raven - the keeper of Living and Dead water, gives the opportunity for the Soul of the deceased to return to his own body, so that a person, returning to the World of Reveal, could complete his unfinished business. In the world of Reveal, they say about such a person: "He survived clinical death" or "He returned from the next world." Oddly enough, but after the return of the God-Controller Varuna of a person to his former life, a person changes his behavior, nor burns his life in vain and completes the work that he did not have time to finish.
In fairy tales, he sometimes helps the hero and even saves him, warning him of danger. In the form of Raven Voronovich, he kidnaps the sister or mother of the hero and either enters into a mortal battle with him, or becomes a true friend and observes the laws of kinship.

In Irish mythology, ravens are considered a symbol of fertility, but also the patron of warriors and a symbol of fierce battles. Odin, the supreme god of the Scandinavians, had two spy crows, Hugin (“thought”) and Munin (“memory”), who flew around the world and watched what was happening where, and then told the owner about everything they saw. The English tales speak of ravens that accompanied the legendary hero Bran everywhere. The hero's head, according to legend, is buried under White Mount, one of the Druid temples in what is now London. It is said that the Ravens jealously guard the grave of their friend, and when they fly away, the end of the world will come. In 1078, William the Conqueror built the White Tower on the site of White Mount - this is the oldest part of the current Tower of London.

Huge black crows live in the fortress now. There are only six of them, and by order of the monarchs they are very well looked after, as the English firmly believe that the day the ravens fly away from the Tower, the monarchy will fall. The Tower has employees specially hired to care for the ravens. They not only feed the birds and monitor their health, but also keep a diary in which they report on minor incidents in the life of birds, their character traits and habits. However, for now, the Taeurian crows seem to be happy with everything and are clearly not going to fly away - and, quite possibly, they simply cannot because of their size. Legendary birds roam imposingly along the paved paths and accept treats from tourists.

SIGNS ASSOCIATED WITH THE BEHAVIOR OF THE RAVEN

And here is how the ancient Indian sage Yavanacharya interprets the signs associated with the Raven in his writings.

"Learn to understand the signs that the Raven gives and you may be able to avoid major troubles or catch your luck."

Meaning: This is normal, you will not receive help, but there will be no barriers to work.

If he swoops in and pecks at the flag or cloth on the roof.

Means misfortune for the head of the family. You should fast on 4 Saturdays.

If he hits a vehicle.

Indicates an accident on an upcoming trip.

If it flies behind you and moves to the right.

You will get injured while traveling.

If he flies ahead of you, croaks and moves to the left.

Your work will be done without your trip.

If it flies from you from left to right and makes sounds from both sides.

Good income from work and from the trip too.

If he pecks at a dry bone.

Indicates a bone injury.

If he flies away from you and carries food in his beak.

Very good...

If he has hair in his beak.

Danger from fire.

If he is holding something metallic.

You will have success.

If he is holding something wooden.

You will not only be successful, but also make friends with a good person for a long time.

If he has something white in his beak.

It means good profit and profit in the profession. If you are in business, then a big income awaits you.

If he has something wooden in his beak.

Beware of bone disease or injury.

If he faces east

An influential person will help you.

If he faces west.

You will have a big problem, perhaps you will be punished.

If he screams twice while sitting on the waste.

Means making a profit.

If he sits on a broken branch.

Indicates an injury to the arm or leg.

If he sits on any temple and croaks.

You will have good income and money.

If he sits quietly on a tree with smooth leaves.

Within a few weeks you will have a financial profit.

If he sits on a dirty (unwashed) animal.

Successful and profitable completion of the business that you are thinking about at the moment.

If he sits on a dead body and does not eat it.

It means great difficulties, a problem related to life may appear.

If he sits on a bundle of cereals.

Very soon you will have a good profit from a trip or a promotion or some kind of job.

If he sits to your left on a dry tree.

Loss at work.

If he stands on the ground with two feet and looks at the sun.

Some very educated person or head of state can die.

If he stands on the ground on one leg and looks at the sun.

A great misfortune may happen in this place and many may die.

If he leaves a white flower on your sheet.

A noble and holy soul is to be born in your family.

If he leaves something white in your house.

Soon your family members will have a profit and the birth of a boy.

If he is facing north.

Possible conflict in the workplace

If he flaps his wings in front of the entrance to your hotel.

You shouldn't stay here, it's better to move somewhere else.

If he flaps his wings while standing.

You'd better leave your thoughts immediately.

If he rubs the top of his head against a branch or hits it against a branch.

Means an upcoming problem with fire.

If it empties on your things

Good profit, the harmful influence of Saturn and Rahu is gone from your life.

If he sits on top and croaks

You will receive the help of friends and profit in work

If he sits on a tree, on a plant that looks like grass.

You may face punishment, be careful what you do.

If he sits on a tree with thorns.

You will have success

If he sits on your roof and croaks

Someone from relatives thinks about you or goes to visit you

If he croaks, looking south.

You may become a victim of a robbery.

If he steals something metal from you

Be careful, you may be in danger. You should fast on 42 Sabbaths and not wear black shoes

If he turns right.

You will not only be successful, but also have a good time.

If two crows eat together.

You have to make a very good profit.

If you hear a raven cry like a carr.

Very soon you will get what you have been wishing for a long time.

If you hear a raven cry like kaaaa.

You are going to travel in the near future.

If you hear the cry of a raven similar to kuu ku.

Means profit for the traveler.

If you hear a cry in a different way, for example, takurrr, etc.

Not a good sign, one Saturday you should fast.

If you hear the cry of kauhu, looking at some house.

Accidents can happen in this house.

If you see an even number of ravens together.

A good sign for the upcoming future, you will gain a good position in society.

During the trip, if you see him flapping his wings and flying away.

It will be a good and fruitful trip

Description

Crow photo

The raven is the largest representative of the corvid family. The body length reaches 70 centimeters, the wingspan is up to one and a half meters. The maximum weight is 2 kilograms.

Appearance

Photo of a crow in winter

The raven is a representative bird. It looks impressive due to the massive sharp beak, long paws, large eyes. Wing color is black. The crow is not to be confused with other similar birds from the genus Ravens - it is distinguished by long narrow wings, as well as a densely feathered wedge-shaped tail.

In adult ravens, feathers are black, glossy, with a bluish tint in the upper part of the body, and greenish in the lower part. In young animals, the feather cover is matte black. The beak and legs of ravens are also black. You can understand which bird is in front of you - female or male - by its size.

In the photo, a raven sits on a stone

Males are larger than females. The physique of the males is dense, knocked down. Feathers are glossy, tightly pressed to the body. The neck is thick and large.

The weight of females ranges from 800-1200 grams. Their tail is not so long, the neck is thin.

Ravens can be distinguished from rooks or ordinary crows by a black beard of thin feathers. They shake while singing.

Lifespan

In the wild, crows live 13-15 years. The life span of nomadic species is reduced to 10-12 years. When kept at home, crows can live up to 40 or even 50 years. There were cases when a feathered pet lived to be 70 years old. If the conditions for keeping a raven are wrong, he will live much less.

An unbalanced diet can lead to obesity or rickets. From a painful condition, the bird quickly dies.

Nutrition

Raven eats

The raven is an omnivorous bird. Forest birds feed on insects, snakes, fish, rodents, lizards, frogs, small birds and their chicks. Ravens are also called scavengers because they do not disdain to eat dead and food waste. City crows circle in flocks over garbage dumps in search of food. However, they are only interested in fresh food, if the food is spoiled, then the bird will not touch it.

The diet contains food of plant origin. Crows are happy to eat grain and fruit crops. In gardens they eat cherries, currants, strawberries, and grapes.

In the photo, a raven hunts a rabbit

The raven, like any other bird of prey, hunts mainly during the day. The hunting area is several square kilometers. Raven performs all actions deliberately, risk is not in his character. Looking out for a victim, it can sit in ambush for up to 15 minutes. The raven, having caught the prey, shares the meal with relatives. It doesn't matter what size the prey is. The main thing is that the family is fed. Crows bury leftover food to eat later. According to the observations of ornithologists, burying and digging up food and various objects is a favorite pastime of these birds.

Spreading

area

The photo shows the arkal of a crow

Numerous populations of ravens live in the northern latitudes of Eurasia (with the exception of the islands of the Arctic Ocean, the Yamal, Taimyr and Gydan Peninsulas), in Greenland, North America, and North Africa. It is scarcely represented in tropical latitudes. There are small settlements of ravens in the mountainous regions of Syria, Iraq, Iran and Pakistan, China, and northern India. It does not nest in Kazakhstan and the deserts of Central Asia. It is rare in European countries.

habitats

Raven flies

Ravens nest on arctic coasts, in the tundra and desert. In the northern regions, they settle on rocky shores and in vegetation along rivers. In mid-latitudes, broad-leaved and coniferous forests are preferred. They live near ponds and swamps. In the taiga they live on the outskirts of the forests. In the south, crows settle in hilly areas, in floodplain forests. In search of food, they settle down next to human habitation. They nest in suburbs and villages.

Why is it called "crow"

In the photo, a raven sits on a stump

The name "raven" was given to the bird due to its pitch-black plumage. In the Old Slavic language there was the word "crow", that is, "black". In turn, "crow" is a borrowed word from the Indian dictionary, meaning "burnt." Raven means "black".

Migratory or not

A photo of a raven flying

Crows are not migratory birds. With food sufficiency, they live in small colonies in one place all their lives. In northern latitudes, in winter, some species switch to a nomadic lifestyle. They migrate in flocks of 10-20 birds. Birds fly away from the nesting place no further than 200 kilometers.

Lifestyle

In the photo, a raven maneuvers in the air

Ravens are known to be intelligent, cautious birds. They are able to brilliantly maneuver in the air and walk on the ground. Before taking off, the raven makes several short jumps, and then rises up with one flap of the wing. In flight, the raven resembles an eagle rather than a bird of the corvid family. The wing beat is rare, with a large amplitude. These birds are one of the few birds that can perform figures similar to aviation aerobatics - “barrel and half-barrel”. In flight, the wings make a peculiar sound, similar to ringing.

Ravens lead complex social lives. They learn throughout their lives, easily adapt to changes in conditions environment. In early spring, they create permanent pairs, build nests together, and raise offspring. They settle at a remote distance from each other (no closer than 1 kilometer from each other). During the winter, the pairs break up. Birds may winter with other bird species.

In the photo, crows are sad for a dead comrade

Crows yearn for their dead relatives, arrange for them a kind of farewell rites. First, they circle a flock over a dead comrade for a long time, and then sit on the branches of trees and mournfully remain silent.

Intelligence and ingenuity

A raven holds a twig in its beak

If you watch a family of crows, you can see that birds communicate using gestures. An individual that wants to attract attention holds a twig or leaf in its beak, and defiantly shows the “toy” to others. Sometimes birds play a game, the meaning of which is to alternately raise and lower a pebble, holding it in its beak. The game continues until one of the players drops it. Technical progress crows use for food: they throw nuts under the wheels of cars to crush them. In winter, birds ride down the snowy hills.

In the photo, a raven breaks a nut

Clever crows demonstrate their intelligence by throwing nuts under the wheels of a car to crush

The fact that ravens have fantastic intellectual abilities is evidenced by the results of experiments by scientists around the world. For example, if two bowls of food are placed in front of a crow, he will choose the one with more food. Dry crusts of bread before use, they like to soak in water.

reproduction

Raven with his chicks

Birds reach sexual maturity at two years. The marriage period passes calmly and quickly. Forest birds choose tall trees to build nests. The dwelling is equipped at a height of at least 15 meters. Ravens living in the desert area settle on the rocks. Both are busy with the arrangement of the dwelling - both the female and the male. The crow's nest is a voluminous capacious structure in the form of a bowl. When building a house, birds use twigs, wires, laces, which are skillfully intertwined. Sometimes the building is made of one material.

Laying occurs early - in February-early March. The reason for this is the melting of the snow cover, when dead animals thaw and food appears. The female lays up to 6 eggs, painted dirty blue with brown spots on the surface. Egg sizes: 4-6 centimeters long, 3-3.8 centimeters wide. Laying continues for a week. The incubation process begins after the third egg is laid. The female is incubating, while the male brings her food.

Photo of crow eggs in the nest

Three weeks later, chicks begin to appear. The hatching process takes two days. The head and back of newborn chicks are covered with thick dark brown down. For the first two weeks, the female is engaged in heating the cubs, while the male feeds both the female and the chicks. Then the mother flies out of the nest, and both parents are already engaged in feeding. Chicks feed on the same food as their parents - insects, pieces of raw meat, plant foods.

At a month and a half, the chicks take to the wings. Until the next season (the end of the next winter), the cubs stay close to the parental home.

Raven species

The genus Ravens includes several species and subspecies of birds.

white-cheeked raven

White-cheeked raven on a stone

Latin name: Corvus albicollis)

Weight: 2000 g

Highest Classification: Crows

A densely built bird with a long curved beak. The plumage is black with a white spot in the back of the head. Males are larger than females. The body length is 56 centimeters, the tail length is up to 19 centimeters.

In the photo, a white-cheeked raven sits on a bench

The species is distributed on the African continent. For housing, he chooses rocks, mountain gorges, rarely vegetation.

Piebald Raven

Piebald Raven on the Grass

Latin name: Corvus albus

Weight: 1300-1500 g

Highest Classification: Crows

Conservation Status: Least Concern

The shoulders, chest and neck are covered with white feathers. The rest of the body is black with a blue tint. Legs are long and slender. Body length 50 centimeters, tail length - 16 centimeters.

Steller's crow in flight

Lives in small flocks or in pairs. The distribution area is the southern part of Africa, the islands of the southern hemisphere. They nest in desert areas. Separate old trees are chosen for the construction of the nest.

Common raven on a stone

Latin name: Corvus

Weight: 800-1600 g

Highest Classification: Crows

Conservation Status: Least Concern

The type species of the genus Corvus. It lives in the northern latitudes, populations in the southern territories are represented by a few flocks. The common raven leads an active life. Prefers to hunt at dusk. Feeds on carrion.

common raven screaming

The common raven lives in a wooded area, sometimes settles in gorges, mountain ranges.

Common raven subspecies:

• C.c. Corax;
• C.c. Varius;
• C.c. subcorax;
• C.c. tingitanus C. c. tibetanus;
• C.c. Kamtschaticus;
• C.c. principalis
• C.c. sinuatus;
• C.c. laurencei;
• C.c. hispanus;

The raven makes a sound

Common raven species differ in size. Birds living in the northern latitudes are larger than their counterparts living in a warm climate. In some varieties, gray and brown shades are present in the color of the feather. The length of the feathers and the color of the beak may also vary.

Desert brown-headed raven in the desert

Latin name: Corvus ruficollis

Weight: 800-1300 g

Highest Classification: Crows

Conservation Status: Least Concern

Young birds are painted brownish-black. With age, the plumage color changes to black with a steel sheen. The feathers on the head and neck are dark brown, closer to chestnut. Beak and paws are black.

Desert brown-headed raven perched on a tree

The lifestyle and habitats are similar to the common raven. During the nesting period, it leads a quiet life, rarely catches the eye. The voice of the desert raven is low and muffled, the cry is similar to the croaking of an ordinary crow.

Photo of a desert brown-headed raven on a branch

Outwardly heavy, clumsy bird. Walks slowly, imposingly. It flies smoothly, sluggishly. The hunt is short. He likes to soar in the air and fall "stone down" in a spiral from a great height.

American raven on a pole

Latin name: Corvus brachyrhynchos

Weight: 800-1300 g

Highest Classification: Crows

Conservation Status: Least Concern

American raven screaming

Heavy downed bird with black plumage. Lives in North America. Smaller than the common raven. At home, for its resemblance to a crow (the American raven is the closest relative of the northwestern crow), this bird is called not raven ("raven"), crow ("crow").

Photo of gray crow

Latin name:Corvus tristis

Weight: 800-1300 g

Highest Classification: Crows

Conservation Status: Least Concern

A bird the size of a black crow. The physique is the same as that of a giant raven. The feathers of the gray crow are long, silky. The general color of the feather is black, but among the feathers there are devoid of pigment. Each bird has individual pigmentation - some have more whitish feathers, some have less. There are no feathers around the eyes, the skin there is pale pink. The color of the beak is bluish to pale pink. Juveniles have pale, light brown plumage.

Photo of a gray crow on a paving stone

The gray raven lives in New Guinea. Lives in packs of 4-8 individuals. The birds communicate with each other with a loud, drawn-out “iuu”, “kauu”.

Content at home

house raven

Black crows are kept as pets. Crow chicks quickly get used to life in captivity. They are not picky and obedient, it is easy to tame them at this age. Having matured, they recognize only the owner. With pleasure they sit on the shoulder, feed from the hands. They are extremely jealous of the owner, do not let other household members near him. In a fit of jealousy, they can attack children and seriously scratch them.

Crows feel comfortable in spacious mesh enclosures. So that the bird does not get bored, the dwelling is equipped with all kinds of "toys" - snags, balls, "busy boards". In cramped conditions, birds behave aggressively.

The nutrition of captive ravens should be complex. The diet includes animal and plant foods: grains, nuts, meat, fish, dairy products. Ravens are fed fresh food.

In the photo people are feeding their pet

At the age of two, crows try to escape from the parent (human). Nature calls them - there comes a need to create a family and hatch offspring. Reproduction of ravens is possible at home. To do this, in the spring, a male is planted with the female. If there are two males in the cage at once, then a fight for the female is not excluded.

A raven sits on a tree branch

• Crows are smart birds. They are able to solve a logical puzzle that would be beyond the power of a four-year-old child.
• Ravens imitate the voices of other birds and animals.
• The Tower of London is guarded by six ravens. There is a superstition in England that the day the black crows fly away the monarchy will collapse. To prevent this from happening, their wings are clipped.
• The black feathers absorb the sun's energy, so it's easier for the bird to endure the heat and be energetic in the late hours. This advantage allows crows to hunt crepuscular animals while other birds are asleep. The symbolic color of the plumage masks the bird at night, making it invisible to animals and birds.

Raven and crow - different birds?

Difference Between Crow and Crow

Many believe that a raven and a crow are heterosexual individuals of the same bird species. Actually this different birds, although they belong to the same family (Crows) and genus (Crows) and have the same name. Raven and crow differ in external characteristics, behavior and lifestyle.

Appearance difference:

• Ravens are larger than crows. The weight of the first reaches two kilograms, while the mass of a crow does not exceed 1200 grams;
• The raven's feather color is black. The crow has black and gray;
• the raven's tail is wedge-shaped. The crow's tail is rounded at the end;
• the raven has ruffled short feathers on its goiter. Crows don't have them.

Behavior difference:

The raven flapped its wings

• The raven makes rare flapping of its wings. Its flight is similar to the flight of birds of prey. The crow flies like other representatives of the passeriformes: it flaps its wings often, moves quickly;
• the raven, before taking off, makes several short jumps. The crow takes off immediately;
• raven croaks. The crow makes clicking sounds;
• Raven's mental abilities are much higher than crows. Some animal psychologists compare ravens to primates and dolphins.

Difference in lifestyle:

In the photo, a raven is holding something in its beak.

• raven - monogamous. The crow finds a new mate every season;
• Ravens are rarely seen in the city or countryside. They nest mainly in desert areas. Usually two large nests are built. Ravens live next to human habitation;
• The raven keeps apart from other bird species. The flight is carried out in flocks of 4-8 individuals. Crows accumulate in large flocks;
• crow chicks grow faster than their counterparts from the crow family. They also leave their nests earlier;
• crow lives 8 years. A raven can live up to 30 and even 50 years;
• a crow can live next to a person. Raven - no;

Signs and superstitions about ravens

Flock of crows near the water

Since ancient times, people have attributed mystical abilities to jet-black birds.

At all times, ravens were considered harbingers of evil. Where the raven appeared, something bad should happen soon. In myths, legends and fairy tales, the raven is associated with evil spirit and death. The crow flies to the bloody battles, pecking out the eyes of dead warriors.

Ravens have been worshiped since ancient times. So the ancient Greeks considered these birds to be messengers of the gods, and the Indians believed that ravens had miraculous powers. Hindus believed that ravens could contact the souls of the dead. Sign: if a bird knocks on a window, then the dead ancestors are trying to convey a message, to warn the living about an impending event.

Raven on the grass near the lake

There is also a positive image of a raven. Intellect, courage, wisdom are associated with this bird. The mystical image of the raven and its character are reflected in all areas of art.

dream interpretation

A flock of ravens flies in the sky

• If a person dreams of a screaming raven, this means that mortal danger hangs over the house and family. For salvation, you need to pray a lot.
• A flock of crows circling overhead in a dream portends a military conflict, a war. Many people will suffer.
• A flock of crows is sitting on the field - by a lean year.

The voice of the raven

In the photo, the raven makes a voice

Ravens have a loud sonorous voice. The tone is low. In the "words" there are solid consonants: "krru", "krun", "kroo", "krro". Sounds are resonant. During the period of incubation of eggs, males sing long, melodic songs. The sounds "karr", "kyrr", "krru" have something in common with throat clicks and "words" in which there are more vowel sounds.

The cry of a crow is exciting, warning. It sounds like a bell in the neighborhood, foreshadowing trouble.

Title options

• The male crow is called Raven;
• The female crow is called - The female crow, crow - stress on 1 syllable, Voronitsa;
• A chick or cub of a crow is called - Crow Chick, Little Crow;
• Chicks or young crows are called - Crow Chicks, Crows.

Among the representatives of the terrestrial fauna there are a wide variety of representatives: some of them are quite nice, others cause disgust or bewilderment; some are timid and even timid, while others, on the contrary, are scandalous and violent; some are rare, endangered species, others are common on almost all continents and are known to everyone. After reading the article prepared by the editors of the site site, you will finally find out what is the difference between a crow and a crow.

How to tell a crow from a crow

The life and inclinations of “our smaller brothers” are described in many TV shows and books, but very often it’s not some rare, almost mythical exotics that become more unexpected, but our close neighbors. Here they are - they live nearby, "at hand", and we usually leave them without attention.

Why? Most likely, because it seems to us that we have already learned almost everything about nature and its inhabitants that surround us. Why, then, even now, rarely does anyone know that the raven is not at all the “husband of the crow”, but a separate species of birds, which includes male and female persons? Previously, I was also mistaken, until I figured out this question for myself in a little more detail.

So, the crow and the black crow are different birds, and belong to the family of the corvids of the passerine series. Although some of us do not distinguish between these birds, which may seem very similar to each other.

Crow

The raven is the largest representative of the corvid family of the passerine family, its length can reach 70 centimeters, and its body weight can be up to 1.5 kilograms. This bird is distinguished by its blue-black cover, thick, somewhat bent cone-shaped beak, long wings and a medium-length tail. Sixty-five species of ravens have now been identified, which are distributed almost all over the world, except for New Zealand and South America. They are found in forests, steppes, deserts and mountains.

In winter, the birds are kept in shoals, in landfills near cities. Nests are built on trees, rocks, coastal cliffs and tall structures. The same nesting site is captured from generation to generation.

The black raven is a strong bird that nests in trees in the thicket of the forest. Crows are kept only in pairs. These birds are distinguished by great devotion and fidelity to their pair. Quite often they sit, pressed against each other, and rush side by side, as if connected by threads of crow's love.

Black crows are rather hardy birds, they have sharp eyesight, excellent hearing and a keen sense of smell. These properties make them well-aimed hunters of small rodents and game. And the fact that they can withstand both heat and frost equally well makes it possible for them to live in the north, in the tropics, deserts, on hills at an altitude of more than four thousand meters above sea level and in other places.

Crow

The crow is smaller in size than the crow. In Russia, the gray crow is mainly distributed. She has a black tail and head, and her body is smoky gray. The gray crow lives in Northern Europe, North America, throughout Scandinavia and even beyond the Arctic Circle. On the lands of the former Soviet Union the gray crow is widespread up to the Yenisei, followed by the possession of black crows.

Crows, our closest neighbors, have adapted well to surviving in urban environments. They are not afraid of street noise, noisy human bustle, slagging habitat. These are omnivorous birds: in the forests they feed on rodents, insects, carrion, in megacities they pick up leftover food near human habitation, in landfills and garbage dumps.

It should be noted that we see a raven all year round, but some are mistaken, believing that these are the same individuals. When the researchers first began to ring the crows, it turned out that Moscow birds winter near Kharkov and Kiev, near Paris - St. Petersburg, near St. Petersburg - Murmansk, and Arkhangelsk ravens visit the Moscow region in winter. In the spring, they return to their native lands and renew their old nests.

When the first rays of the sun begin to warm in the spring, on the willows and poplars, the crows have chosen to build their nests, activity begins to boil under a loud croak that blocks all neighboring sounds. Birds are busy in their dwellings, completing their construction and laying new branches, lining the bottom with moss, feathers, dry grass. All these are indisputable signs of spring, from which human hearts rejoice, not even paying attention to the fact that the voices of these birds are rough and unmelodious.

As previously mentioned, a crow is half the size of a raven, and it lives half as much. There is a belief that crows live for three hundred years, but their real life expectancy is much less. According to scientists, in the wild, these birds live up to 10-15 years. However, at home, with proper care and favorable conditions, the life cycle can double and even triple.

Crows in myths and legends

Ravens and crows are considered the most highly developed among other birds. They are characterized by rare intelligence and dexterity. In some countries, these birds are protected by law.

However, despite all the positive qualities of these birds, their image in folklore is associated with dark forces. In particular, the black raven is often mentioned in folk legends and fairy tales, where it is required to resurrect a murdered young man with the help of living and dead water, which this bird most often carries.

The fact that the raven voluntarily feeds on carrion has given reason for many centuries to consider him the herald of death, associated with bloodshed, war and violence. During the time of Kievan Rus, flocks of such birds were perceived as harbingers of the attack of the Tatars.

And now the people say: "If a raven cries over the house where the patient lies, this is a bad omen." And historians are familiar with this fact. When Alexander the Great entered Babylon, a great flock of ravens accompanied his army. And only after Alexander died, it became clear to everyone why the ravens arose at that particular time and in such a huge number.

• It should be noted that the ancient Greeks greatly respected the raven. They considered him a sacred bird, seeing off Apollo, the patron of the augurs. In the opinion of the latter, this bird has supernatural power and can portend the future.

• The Danes dedicated the raven to the god Odin. It was believed that Odin has 2 ravens, which he sends every morning to collect information about what's new happened in the world. In the evening they come and whisper to him what they have learned. And according to legend, the raven was once white, but for its talkativeness it was painted black.
• In Tibet, the raven is a symbol of mediation between heaven and earth. Since ancient times, he was revered there, bringing sacrifices.
• In Russian folklore, the raven is a bird of things: "The old raven does not croak past." In the West and in the East, there are many different beliefs that this bird has the gift of magic, prophecy, as well as the ability to predict weather changes and death.

Once upon a time, superstitious people listened every morning to how many times a crow cawed. Based on whether this number is even or not, they predicted the weather. According to popular beliefs about warlocks and witches among the Slavs, ravens were their reliable helpers.

Raven as a pet

It has been recorded that the raven can imitate human speech, therefore it is perceived as a messenger capable of speaking the language of people. And since the color of his plumage is black, and the voice itself is dissonant, it is associated only with bad news, albeit honest.

Ravens are considered extremely intelligent birds: they quickly learn to understand a person and easily obey her orders. If they fall into captivity with yellow mouths, then, repeating incoherent words, they memorize them very quickly.

Some may argue that many birds are known, for example, magpies, starlings, parrots perfectly copy human speech. But the imitation of a human voice in terms of the clarity of pronunciation of words in crows is quite high and even better than that of parrots.

And the crows that today live in the yards on Yaroslavov Val can also speak and amuse people with their dialogues! Lexicon crows have a rather large one - up to 30–40 words. Raised by man from chicks, crows become very devoted to them. This is confirmed by the mass of testimonies of people who kept these birds in their homes. Having got used to their owners, they may even try to protect them by showing aggression towards strangers or animals.

Of course, you don’t need to specifically catch a crow for home maintenance, but if fate brings you a chick with a broken wing, or a small crow that slipped out of the nest, then grow it with love. The bird will grow up over the summer big, beautiful, powerful and will be an extremely devoted raven to you.

There will be no particular problems with food for him, since crows are undemanding and omnivorous. Naturally, it is necessary to feed representatives of the corvidae family as heterogeneously as possible: pieces of meat, fish, poultry, bread, cheese, steamed grain, and so on.

However, it is worth observing certain rules and requirements:

• chicken eggs in the diet should be added once every 1-2 days;
• chicks should be given minced meat;
• do not feed the birds spicy, fried and salty foods.

Regarding the conditions of detention, the cage must be free, because crows love space, so they cannot live in a parrot cage. It is even better to be without a cage at all, using an aviary, which is much more spacious. Or after the bird gets used to it a little, leave the cage open, guaranteeing him free movement.

So, if you do everything right, take care and love your winged guest, then the reward for you and your family will be the cheerful glow of black and blue beads of his eyes and the love of a bird that will never leave you.

The main differences between a crow and a crow

The most important difference between birds is the mass and length of the body of animals. The raven somewhat exceeds the size and weight of black ravens.

The second indicator is habitats. The area of ​​distribution of the crow exceeds the area of ​​the crow.