dragon@eleazar.dartmouth.edu (Sam Conway) (03/03/90)
"This grim, ungainly, ghastly, gaunt, and ominous bird of yore..." Poe knew not what he was talking about. Ravens are just about the most fascinating non-raptors (believe it or not, they're classified as songbirds!) that I know. If you ever have the chance, take some time and watch one. They are to the bird world what otters are to the mammalian one: intelligent, cunning, and above all, playful. Yes, they eat garbage and drop nasty stuff on your car, but we all have our faults. I was watching a raven outside my window who had found a shoelace and was having a grand old time playing with it. He slung it around in circles around his head, threw it and chased after it, and once when it whapped him accidentally in the face he jumped on it and yelled at it for nearly five minutes. It was like watching a kitten. I am fortunate to have made the aquaintance of an imprinted captive raven who has shown me just how slim the margin between "human intellect" and "animal intellect" can be. Ravens are well-known for their ability to mimic human speech (and forget all that horsehockey some- one might have told you about having to split their tongues, first). This one doesn't stoop so low; he's taught all the people at the center to mimic HIM. I noticed recently that we all seem to have picked up his ravenesque vocabulary, and can tell when he wants attention, wants food, or wants to play...and we can respond in kind, though we often make ourselves look very foolish. He loves to play, as is the nature of his species; unfortunately, his favorite game is "bite the humans as hard as you can and make them scream". Alas, with all his smarts, he doesn't understand that his powerful beak can hurt -- then again, maybe he DOES. Ravens, like many animals, suffer greatly at the hands of Mankind. Not only are we throwing more and more plastic and other indigestible garbage out there to tempt them, but ravens are very often mistaken for crows and shot. There are many subtle yet definite differences: crows are small, have small pointed beaks, and a hawk-like short tail in flight. Ravens are larger, have big Jimmy Durante shnozzes, a diamond-shaped tail in flight, AND ARE FEDERALLY PROTECTED. This doesn't help the nearsighted gunman who can't tell the difference, although the resulting fine can often improve his eyesight. It does somewhat help the problem of people wanting ravens as pets. At first glance, this would seem attractive. Their plumage, though it appears dull black, is really very shiny and irridescent up close, and their wit and wisdom has already been mentioned. My friends, ravens do NOT make good pets! Not only are they perfectly happy surrounded by the most messy conditions, for which they will strive given half a chance, but their curiosity and sense of fun will lead them to make a shambles out of any room you try to place them in. Not only that, but their beaks are powerful enough to peck a hole in a stone wall -- and again, given half a chance, they will! Our imprinted raven was raise illegally by some teenagers in Arizona. It is said that it was brought to the attention of Conservation authorities by the teenagers themselves, who had tried desperately to get rid of the bird...who kept coming back! The authorities con- fiscated the bird and charged a fine to the perpetrators, although having seen this bird's idea of a good time, they doubtless thought it a small price to pay to be rid of him! Thus, the best place to observe a raven is in the wild. If you are patient, these birds, natural performers all, will very likely give you a good demonstration of their remarkable intellect. Just don't bring your lunch: while you're busy watching one, his friend may be sneaking into your picnic basket to see what you've brought! -- Sam Conway * dragon@eleazar.dartmouth.edu * Don't mention the war! Chemistry Dept., Dartmouth College, NH * I mentioned it once, but I Vermont Raptor Center (VINS) * think I got away with it...
shafer@elxsi.dfrf.nasa.gov (Mary Shafer (OFV)) (03/05/90)
In article <19861@dartvax.Dartmouth.EDU> dragon@eleazar.dartmouth.edu (Sam Conway) writes:
Thus, the best place to observe a raven is in the wild. If you are
patient, these birds, natural performers all, will very likely give you
a good demonstration of their remarkable intellect. Just don't bring
your lunch: while you're busy watching one, his friend may be sneaking
into your picnic basket to see what you've brought!
When we were at Denali National Park the guides told us a good raven
tale. Climbers on Mt McKinley cache their food and other equipment at
about 18,000 ft while they make a dash for the summit (not quite
21,000 ft). These caches are marked with something red like a
bandanna. The local ravens figured out the system, learning that a
pile of rocks or snow with red on the top has food in it. The ravens
have become very good at robbing these caches.
18,000 ft!
As I mentioned elsewhere, I have a pair of ravens nesting in my
back yard for the third year now. They are really fascinating
to watch, training the young to be predators.
We also have a group that lives near Dryden. In the summer afternoons
they slope soar over a properly oriented building, giving us a great
display of aerobatics. Jonathan Livingston Seagull would have never
been frustrated if he'd been Jonathan Livingston Raven. The ravens
do great snap rolls, barrel rolls, and loops.
--
Mary Shafer shafer@skipper.dfrf.nasa.gov or ames!skipper.dfrf.nasa.gov!shafer
NASA Ames Dryden Flight Research Facility, Edwards, CA
Of course I don't speak for NASAdonnam@thor.SanDiego.NCR.COM (Donna Mitchell) (03/06/90)
With all this talk of Ravens, I have to tell about my guys. I have an oak tree at the end of my property. At this time of year it is hard to see the tree for all the Ravens. There are four telephone poles within eyesight. Each pole has a Raven sitting on top. We joke that they are listening to the phone calls and broadcasting the conversations. Gives a new meaning to party-lines. The Ravens come and go throughout the year. They'll be here for a couple of months, leave for a couple of months, come back for a couple.... But you always know when they're back. The caws and the blacken skies. They walk a lot. They fly down to one end of our drive way, then walk on up to the other end (.2 mi). While they are flying or sitting on the poles or in the trees, they caw. When they walk up the drive way, they grumble to themselves. Sort of "why did they make this driveway so bloody long!" They grumble when grouped together. No wonder they call a group of Ravens a "murder". That sounds like what they are plotting. Lots of fun to watch! Donna
jlevy@cbnewsd.ATT.COM (janet.levy) (03/06/90)
In article <19861@dartvax.Dartmouth.EDU> dragon@eleazar.dartmouth.edu (Sam Conway) writes: >Ravens, like many animals, suffer greatly at the hands of Mankind. Not >only are we throwing more and more plastic and other indigestible garbage >out there to tempt them, but ravens are very often mistaken for crows ^^^^^ >and shot. There are many subtle yet definite differences: crows are >small, have small pointed beaks, and a hawk-like short tail in flight. >Ravens are larger, have big Jimmy Durante shnozzes, a diamond-shaped >tail in flight, AND ARE FEDERALLY PROTECTED. This doesn't help the ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ As far as I know, crows are also protected under the Migratory Bird protection laws. They were added some years back. I believe only a few birds are unprotected: English sparrows, starlings, and pigeons (rock doves). Right? Janet Levy jsl@ihlpm.ATT.COM