Raven Care Sheet

[alex_c]

no, the magpies, currawongs and lacies do not get OUR eggs, we make sure of it to the extent of watching the enclosure. I didn't know they were natives, but i have always been aware of the difference between ravens and crows, for one thing i cannot stand crows but i like ravens - they seem 'cleaner'

and what happens if a lacie eats the poisoned raven?

 

[alex_c]

ive actually been considering getting a new bird to hand rear where would i legally obtain a raven chick?

 

[Khagan]

So do you get to keep this cool lil guy? Or only untill he is strong enough to be released?

 

[Veredus]

A friend in the country used to say a 22-250 took good care of them LOL !!!

Yeh and a shovel will take good care of a snake aye!

I suppose we could run around squishing corroborree frogs under our boots or pour ****nic in the Mary River yeh? Would be all in good fun.

 

[slip_phreak]

definately a very adaptive animal.. i've seen them flying over driving ranges (the golf variety) , picking up a golf ball then trying to smash them on the roads by dropping them out of trees etc.. thinking that they are eggs.

 

[Veredus]

Damn word filter...surely that's going too far...

In any case I would love to have a Raven, intelligent and beautiful birds, I guess watching the ones that live around my uni campus will have to suffice for me seeing as they are illegal in this state.

 

[Snake Catcher Victoria]

So do you get to keep this cool lil guy? Or only untill he is strong enough to be released?

We are sort of obligated to make it ready to go back to the wild, and i would like to see that happen to.
He might be smart enough to know what side his bread is buttered and decide to hang around..I know hed be welcome here if he does, or she.
Q, how do you sex a raven?

 

[SLACkra]

hey baz, the one way i know how to sex birds when there is not obvious difference in appearance between the sexes to feel around their bum. If the two bones are far apart its a girl, close together its a boy as the females require the extra space so they can lay eggs. Ravens are fantastic animals, I fondly remember watching the bird show at Toronga Zoo and they brought out a raven. It's treat was tied to one end of a length of string and the other to a branch and it was dangling. The raven using its feet and beak pulled the string up and got to its treat. apparently self taught as well. They have also been known to use traffic to crack hard nuts, they drop the nuts on the pedestrian crossings at intersections, wait till the nut gets cracked and then retrieve it when the crossing light is green.

good luck with tookie, he/she is in good hands,

Andrew

 

[RevDaniel]

I have always wanted a raven as a pet.

 

[sydneytradingco]

SSSSORY sssnakeman but crows do attack lambs and not sick ones! They are a pretty nasty bird! My mate who has sheep shoots them on site.
Now Ravens they are probably no different but I'll give Tookie the benefit if the doubt.
But are Ravens Australian natives because they are native to Europe - hard to believe they evolved here and there. Add sparrows,blackbirds and crows to that list.

 

[Snake Catcher Victoria]

The Native Australian Raven and the Little Raven are widespread throughout Victoria and are present in all farming areas. The closely related Little Crow is uncommon in Victoria and is only found in the north west corner of the State. The Forest Raven is found mainly in coastal areas. All of the ravens and the Little Crow are protected wildlife. While there are undoubtedly instances where ravens do cause substantial losses of livestock, this is the exception, rather than the rule. Detailed studies of lamb predation in Australia have shown that neither disease nor predation is responsible for most of the ten million or so deaths of newborn lambs that occur in Australia each year: most lambs die because they are starving, after the suckling relationship between mother and offspring has been broken or failed to establish. Since starvation of lambs in Australia is usually irreversible, for economic reasons, it is academic whether a predator hastens the inevitable death of such lambs. However, such starvation can be avoided. Correct nutrition of the ewe during pregnancy and the provision of adequate shelter and supervision near lambing time will reduce the number of lambs vulnerable to predation. To achieve these changes, it is necessary to accept that losses due to predation are not as large as they appear to be. The autopsy of dead lambs, the recognition of the wounds found, and the assessment of lamb viability provide logical and convincing evidence.

dse report..
Farmers like to find a scapegoat and the crow, raven and snake have been good for this since biblical times

 

[Radar]

1)-hard to believe they evolved here and there.
2)Add sparrows,blackbirds and crows to that list.

1) You should study evolution a bit more closesly.

2) Indigenous Aussies and Indigenous Africans are the same right? Or do they just have the same colour skin?

 

[Forensick]

i always wanted pet raven too....

and always planned on naming it "quoth"

 

[moosenoose]

This is all very interesting reading Baz, as my kids have just brought home a young Magpie from the park

My first question was, where did it comes from (nest location), were the parents present, can it fly?? blah blah blah No to all questions. So damn it!! Here it is at home. Seems to be feeding and happy and we are trying to keep it warm and quiet. Will post a pic later also.

My success rate with birds is appalling, but I can't just leave it! It'll either be eaten by a cat or die with all the rain about. Doomed either way I reckon - so here I go again, hopefully I can have a win this time.

 

[moosenoose]

There's the little critter:

 

[Isis]

I think the ravens attack only sick lambs and they also eat the placentas at birthing tim.
Im quite sure a healthy lamb is well protected by its mother and ,if they actually kill a lamb, (wivestales) they are probably doing it a favour.
In the bush they perform a service by eating carrion, and taking sick and injured animals out as well.
In captivity they are like a dog and need to be treated and trained differently to parrots and raptors because they are so much more intelligent.
Kill your ferals but leave the native ravens alone.
No animal lover would lay poisoned eggs out for our native animals to eat.
Grr
Baz

Yes they do clean up the afterbirth and they also do kill the sick lambs...but they also kill plenty of healthy, strong lambs too. A sheep has no way of defending its newborn lamb against crows when there is usually a few of them attacking the lambs eyes and bum...they incapacitate the lamb them go in for the kill...Not nice to see or hear, and can be devastating to farmers.

They are absolute vermin, they also attack young native marsupials as well as reptiles. Not nice animals but very smart.

 

[serenaphoenix]

i can't believe anyone actually suggested murder! you should be ashamed of your selves! I feed them fresh kangaroo meat off the balcony - they're beautiful to watch (and yes - they are the australian native ravens - not the feral crow - and regardless.... tsk tsk tsk.)

 

[nuthn2do]

Yes they do clean up the afterbirth and they also do kill the sick lambs...but they also kill plenty of healthy, strong lambs too. A sheep has no way of defending its newborn lamb against crows when there is usually a few of them attacking the lambs eyes and bum...they incapacitate the lamb them go in for the kill...Not nice to see or hear, and can be devastating to farmers.

They are absolute vermin, they also attack young native marsupials as well as reptiles. Not nice animals but very smart.

I'd like to see video footage of a crow taking out a healthy lamb because it doesn't happen on this property.

 

[Hickson]

Yes they do clean up the afterbirth and they also do kill the sick lambs...but they also kill plenty of healthy, strong lambs too. A sheep has no way of defending its newborn lamb against crows when there is usually a few of them attacking the lambs eyes and bum...they incapacitate the lamb them go in for the kill...Not nice to see or hear, and can be devastating to farmers.

They are absolute vermin, they also attack young native marsupials as well as reptiles. Not nice animals but very smart.

This is typical of many of the anti-raven posts. The thing I find interesting is that people are deadset against a native bird (shooting or poisoning them) because it attacks the young of an introduced species.

And Jen: how do you tell the difference between a raven and a crow? I know animal people in NSW who can't tell the difference between a raven and a chough.



HIx

 

[Snake Catcher Victoria]

Very cute moose,Magpies are on the list of animals that can be kept in victoria but ravens dont get a mention.
The only licence i can find for a native raven is a licence for shooting native animals.
Handed out quite freely in south australia to.
Hix, you are right about anti raven posts. I equate it to the 'a good snake is dead snake" mentality
espoused by people who are scared of them or just plain to lazy to properly research an animal before condemning them.
Ignorance still rules amoung the people and our elected politicians