Common raven

Corvus corax

Photo by Frank Vassen (Wikipedia)

Common name:
common raven (en); corvo-comum (pt); grand corbeau (fr); cuervo común (es); kolkrabe (de)

Taxonomy:
Order Passeriformes
Family Corvidae

Range:
This species is found throughout most of Europe, Asia and North America, with the exceptions of northern Greenland, northern Siberia, the south-eastern United States, south-east Asia and Japan. They are also found in northern Africa from Morocco to Libya.

Size:
These birds are 56-78 cm long and have a wingspan of 100-150 cm. They weigh 0,7-1,7 kg.

Habitat:
The common raven is found in a wide range of habitats including temperate and tropical forests, grasslands, scrublands, rocky areas, coastal areas, tundra and hot deserts. They can occur from sea level up to an altitude of 6.300 m.

Diet:
They are highly opportunistic, most often taking carrion, but also insects, small vertebrates, seeds and grains, fruits and human waste.

Breeding:
Common ravens breed in February-August. They are monogamous and tend to mate for life. The nest is a deep owl made of large sticks and twigs, lined with roots, ark, mud and sometimes fur. It is placed in a large tree, cliff ledge or less often on an abandoned building. The female lays 3-7 pale bluish-green eggs with brown blotches, which she incubates alone for 18-25 days. The chicks are fed by both parents and fledge 5-7 weeks after hatching, remaining with their parents for another 6 months after fledging.

Conservation:
IUCN status - LC (Least Concern)
This species has an extremely large breeding range and the global population is estimated to be over 16 million individuals. Populations is North America and most of Europe have undergone moderate to large increases in recent decades.