Common Raven

The raven, Corvus corax, is a very common bird in Wyoming, even in the middle of winter.  According to Wikipedia, the American common raven is also known as the northern raven and is categorized as the subspecies principalis.  Ravens soar, singly or in pairs, over the open spaces near Laramie, regardless of the cold.  While the smaller crows tend to stay near town, if you see a large black bird up in the mountains, it is likely a raven.  It may even be playing in the snow!

Ravens are great fliers, always seeming to enjoy the air currents while perfecting their acrobatic stunts.  Today, even in winds gusting over 50 mph, I saw ravens in the air.  One was nearly stationary, but he still managed to stay aloft.  The following photo was taken in the summer at the summit of Medicine Bow Peak, where a pair of ravens were having loads of fun diving straight down and soaring back up again.



In a previous blog I mentioned some differences between crows and ravens, including their tails.  In the following picture, the wedge shape of the raven's tail is very apparent.  Crow tails are fanned.

This species is another clever animal, not only showing evidence of play but of problem solving as well.  The PBS show "Nature" has a short video clip of an excellent example of this bird's mind:  video-raven-intelligence

An article by Loren Haury on the Desert Foundation website states:  "Second only to macaws in intelligence, ravens have a brain mass to body mass ratio similar to that of primates. As John Marzluff writes, 'Mentally, crows and ravens are more like flying monkeys than they are like other birds. This means they are able to learn, remember, and use insight to solve natural and human challenges'. They use tools to get food or escape cages and practice deceit to protect food caches from theft by other ravens."  

Flying monkeys!