Common Raven - Corvus corax

The common raven is a species of bird in the corvidae family, it is the largest bird in the order of Passeriformes. Of all the birds it is the one who have one of the biggest brain, and
among all the species, the young ravens stand out because they are the most playful.

Corvids reputation were not always bad, Aesop's fables, for example, highlight the intelligence of crows. However, the fact that it is a scavenger bird, a natural and yet necessary renderer has earned it a bad reputation, accentuated by Christianity which, as with the bear and the wolf, demonizes it. In the Middle Ages, it inspired disgust and terror, as illustrated by François Villon's Ballad of the Hanged. On the other hand, in Scandinavian
mythology, the crow is of paramount importance. The Viking god Odin does not separate from Hugin (thought, intelligence) and Munin (memory) two crows placed on his shoulders
which are his eyes, his ears and his advice.

Since a few decades his

CLASS : Birds
ORDER : Passeriformes
FAMILY : Corvidae
WINGSPAN : 100-150 cm
WEIGHT : 585 - 2kg
CLUTCH SIZE : 4 to 6 eggs
INCUBATION : 18 - 21 days
LIFE EXPECTANCY : 12 to 18 in the wild
DIET : it is omnivorous, it is an opportunistic scavenger, consuming a large variety of animals and plants. It feeds on arthropods, amphibians, small mammals, birds and reptiles but also plant food (seeds, fruits and buds). He also knows how to use a tool.
NATURAL HABITAT : Forest, Shrubland, Grassland, Rocky areas (eg. inland cliffs, mountain peaks)
RANGE : it has a Holarctic distribution (North America, Africa north of the Atlas Mountains and Eurasia north of the Himalayas).

Conservation status info

From the mid-1600s to the mid-1900s this species was widely persecuted due to fear and superstition, which led a reduction in European populations. Still persecuted in some countries, the common raven now is protected in France and its population is stable.