Common Raven

Common raven photo by Mick Thompson

The highlight for the annual Poynette Christmas Bird Count (CBC) held on January 4 was finding the first common raven in the 49 year history of the count. Diane and Becki Tomlinson had reported hearing a pair of ravens this fall from the woods that runs east of the DNR MacKenzie Environmental Education Center for about 1.25 miles. Finding the bird was a focus for this CBC. In the morning Jeff and Caleb Lang surveyed for birds in that area, but were not able to find any ravens.

After lunch Dory Owen and Galen Hasler headed to the MacKenzie Center to look and listen for ravens. Dory and Galen had hardly gotten out of the car when they heard a raven calling. There was a Boy Scout troop exploring the MacKenzie Center, and Dory immediately deputized them to help find the raven. After scouring the woods for a short time, a pair of confused looking Boy Scouts exclaimed, “We found it!” Dory followed them down a trail to an enclosure marked Common Raven. This was a captive exhibit bird. We did not think National Audubon Society would accept that observation even though Dory took a short video, and we had 100% documentation. 

Mark then called Becki Tomlinson who took a hike in the wooded area on Tomlinson land, and a calling raven flew over her within the hour. The first “wild raven” for the Poynette Christmas Count was in the record book!

The Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology writes about ravens that, “ravens are the largest-bodied of all passerines… This large, black, majestic bird is geographically and ecologically one of the most widespread naturally occurring birds in the world. It is distributed throughout major portions of North America, Europe, Asia, and North Africa, and in all terrestrial biomes except tropical rain forests. The North American Breeding Bird Survey found raven numbers to be increasing from 1966-2014, and Partners In Flight estimated the global raven population at 20 million birds with about 1.8 million in the United States.

Common raven range map, courtesy of Cornell Lab of Ornithology

In the 1991 publication Wisconsin Birdlife, Samuel Robbins Jr. wrote that, "The earliest settlers found common ravens present throughout most of the state, wherever forests prevailed. Hoy recorded them at Racine where they sometimes outnumbered crows." It is likely that they were widespread throughout southern Wisconsin, especially in the southwest and along Lake Michigan. Ravens were much more restricted by 1900, and they were only found in the north and central regions save for a few outlying observations in the south. By the 1940's their range contracted even further into the northern third of Wisconsin. 

eBird map of common raven breeding. Black = confirmed, dark purple = probable. See more: https://ebird.org/atlaswi/map/comrav

In the recently completed Breeding Bird Atlas II, observers in Columbia County confirmed ravens nesting in four blocks, probably nesting in two blocks, and possibly nesting in two more blocks. These observations are the southernmost raven records in Wisconsin and a southern expansion from current range maps.

In May of 2016, Mark, Heather Iznalaco, and Jim and Kathy Shurts were doing a Birdathon. They stopped north of Rio along a red and white pine plantation to listen for ravens since Mark and Sue had heard then in the local area. “We just got out of the car and a raven was calling from the pines. Mark secured permission for the group to hike the pines and look for the raven nest. We were lining up and spread out ready to start walking when Mark saw a raven sitting on a stick nest in the pines about 30 yards from the road.”

In Columbia County crows are more common than ravens.  If we see large black birds and can not hear them we assume they are crows.  Ravens are a large, thick-necked bird with a hefty bill, a shaggy neck, and wedge-shaped tail. While appearances are similar at a distance, the low gurgling calls of a raven are easily distinguished from the crow’s familiar CAW! 

The raven seen on the Poynette CBC is 5.5 miles north of Goose Pond.  Ravens can fly long distances in their daily movements, and we hope to have someone report a raven at Goose Pond and add it to the bird checklist as bird species number 264.

Written by Mark Martin and Sue Foote-Martin, Goose Pond resident managers, and Graham Steinhauer,  land steward

• Cool Facts from Cornell Lab of Ornithology

  • The Common Raven is an acrobatic flier, often doing rolls and somersaults in the air. One bird was seen flying upside down for more than a half-mile. Young birds are fond of playing games with sticks, repeatedly dropping them, then diving to catch them in midair.

  • Common Ravens 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. They’ve been seen waiting in trees as ewes give birth, then attacking the newborn lambs.

  • They also use their intellect to put together cause and effect. A study in Wyoming discovered that during hunting season, the sound of a gunshot draws ravens in to investigate a presumed carcass, whereas the birds ignore sounds that are just as loud but harmless, such as an air horn or a car door slamming.

  • This species has long been a part of the folklore of many cultures. Native Americans of the Northwest revere ravens as being the creator of earth, moon, sun, and stars, but also regard it as trickster and cheater. 

  • People the world over sense a certain kind of personality in ravens. Edgar Allan Poe clearly found them a little creepy. The captive ravens at the Tower of London are beloved and perhaps a little feared: legend has it that if they ever leave the tower, the British Empire will crumble. Native people of the Pacific Northwest regard the raven as an incurable trickster, bringing fire to people by stealing it from the sun, and stealing salmon only to drop them in rivers all over the world.