Common Raven

Corvus corax

The common raven or northern raven is a large all-black passerine bird. It is the most widely distributed of all corvids, found across the Northern Hemisphere. There are 11 accepted subspecies with little variation in appearance, although recent research has demonstrated significant genetic differences among populations from various regions. It is one of the two largest corvids, alongside the thick-billed raven, and is the heaviest passerine bird; at maturity, the common raven averages 63 centimetres in length and 1.47 kilograms in weight, up to 2 kg (4.4 lb) in the heaviest individuals. Although their typical lifespan is considerably shorter, common ravens can live more than 23 years in the wild. Young birds may travel in flocks but later mate for life, with each mated pair defending a territory. Source

Where it is now

In the last 8 weeks this bird was recorded 2,126,126 times across 141 areas (each area is a 5 degree square).

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Movement and weather

Each season it is first heard regularly where daytime highs are around 24°C (typically 19 to 32°C, from 50 areas). That range is wide, so temperature alone does not explain when it turns up.

Over the weeks it was present in the past year, its centre in North America ranged from 47°N in November to 57°N in May, about 1,100 km apart.

Arrival dates

The week it was first heard regularly in each region, after at least six weeks away. Dates differ from south to north, so a region has a range.

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Figures are effort corrected and come from automatic sound identification, which makes mistakes. How this is measured and how it compares with human observers.