Common Raven
Corvus corax
Also known as: Northern Raven, Raven
Habitat
Ground
Diet
VertFishScav
Active Time
Diurnal
Size
928 g
About This Species
A large, intelligent corvid found across a huge range of habitats from cliffs and mountains to tundra and desert, often seen soaring and tumbling acrobatically on thermals or performing rolls in flight. Its deep, croaking call carries a long distance and is a good way to locate a pair before spotting them. Ravens are highly social problem-solvers and are frequently seen investigating carrion or human refuse, or working cooperatively in pairs around cliffs and open country at any time of day.
Ethical Viewing Guidelines
- Ravens are wary and intelligent, and a respectful distance of several tens of metres is generally advisable, particularly near a nest site on a cliff ledge or in a tall tree.
- Wild birds are protected under general wildlife law across most of its range, including the Migratory Bird Treaty Act in North America and the Wildlife and Countryside Act in the UK, and nests should not be approached or disturbed.
- Cliff-nesting pairs are especially sensitive to human presence below or above the nest ledge, so route paths well away from known nest sites during the breeding season.
Seasonal Activity
11,680,495 sightings · 2000–2026
Citizen science records via GBIF
Classification
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Aves
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Corvidae
Traits
- Diet
- VertFishScav
- Foraging
- Ground
- Activity
- Diurnal
- Body mass
- 928 g
Photo
(c) arbyreed, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA)
CC-BY-NC-SA-4.0
Occurrence data from GBIF.