Wednesday 10 April 2013

Common Raven - National Bird of Bhutan


The Common Raven (Corvus corax), also known as the Northern Raven, is a large, all-black pas-serine bird. They are among the smartest of all birds, gaining a reputation for solving ever more complicated problems invented by ever more creative scientists. These big, sooty birds thrive among humans and in the back of beyond, stretching across the sky on easy, flowing wing beats and filling the empty spaces with an echoing croak.


Interesting & Amazing fact about Common Raven are:
  1. It is the largest bird of the crow family.
  2. They are capable of aerial stunts similar to those executed by the birds of prey. 
  3. Like in many other birds, when a raven is on a branch, the feet's muscles and tendons constrict automatically the toes, so that the birds waste little energy on this. 
  4. Ravens live from deserts to coniferous forests and coastal cliffs. In forests, they nest in stick-made nests on trees, on deserts in rock cavities.
  5. Young birds are fond of playing games with sticks, repeatedly dropping them, and then diving to catch them in midair.
  6. They are smart, which makes them dangerous predators. They sometimes work in pairs to raid seabird colonies, with one bird distracting an incubating adult and the other waiting to grab an egg or chick as soon as it’s uncovered.
  7. Common Ravens can mimic the calls of other bird species. When raised in captivity, they can even imitate human words; one Common Raven raised from birth was taught to mimic the word “nevermore.”
  8. Call of this bird can be express tenderness, happiness, surprise, emotion or rage.
  9. These birds are considered as most intelligent birds, due to having high learning ability and use of logic for solving real life problems.
  10. Raven put other animals to do task for them intelligently.
  11. They feed on fruits, seeds, nuts, fish, carrion, small animals, food remains and garbage. They even dig on snow to inspect plastic bags with waste.
  12. Ravens are known to steal the food of many birds and mammals, even from dogs. They can act in pairs: one individual captures dog's attention, while the other steals its food.
  13. They coexist with humans for thousands of years due to their omnivorous diet.
  14. Males bring some sticks to the nest, but most of the building is done by females. 

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