How often do ravens do appear in the city? (1 Viewer)

Lmc3598 · Feb 13, 2011

Earlier last year, cant remember exactly when, I visited Edinburgh Castle and soaring above it was a raven. I know it was a raven because it had long wings, wedge- shaped tail and dwarfed all the carrion crows and jackdaws swarming around it. I got a couple of poor shots with my phone but am on my ipod just now so cant upload them. The raven was only there for about a minute before one particularly angry carrion crow lunged at it and chased it full speed away from the castle and maybe even out of the city!

I know Edinburgh Castle has a captive raven so i thought that was what attracted the bird. But even then, why would a bird of remote moors and uplands come into Edinburgh?

MJB · Feb 13, 2011

Lmc3598 said:
I know Edinburgh Castle has a captive raven so i thought that was what attracted the bird. But even then, why would a bird of remote moors and uplands come into Edinburgh?

In UK, the Raven has long been considered a cliff-nester, although as you say inhabiting moors, from time to time a ground-nester, but in much of Europe it is a tree-nester, and it is these populations that are expanding their range eg on the eastern Austria/western Hungary border, where they are loosely colonial.

In the west of East Anglia, I understand a few pairs have colonised woodland/plantations. Your wandering bird might have simply responded to captive birds calling, or simply be carrying out a recce for a Festival performance of Edgar Allen Poe's poem...
MJB

Gill Osborne · Feb 13, 2011

Lmc3598 said:
Earlier last year, cant remember exactly when, I visited Edinburgh Castle and soaring above it was a raven.

Can't remember the last time I visited Edinburgh Zoo (5/6 years ago I guess) I remember seeing a couple of ravens there - up near the top section where the zebra are. When I first saw them, quite unafraid and walking about despite nearby zoo visitors, I thought ''That's a raven!'' and even though I tried SO hard to convince myself it wasn't it had ALL the jizz of a raven and was massive compared to nearby jackdaw & carrion crows. These birds weren't zoo birds but actually living and flying free around the zoo grounds. I didn't tick them tho' :smoke: I had my first 'proper' ravens in Martindale a few months later :t:

Perhaps the ones in Edinburgh have just cottoned on to the easy pickings to be had from messy tourists!

Lmc3598 · Feb 13, 2011

Thanks Gill for your story. The ravens there would have probably been attracted by the zoo ravens. Who knows one of them might have been my raven. Maybe in the future every city might have a pair of ravens.

Lmc3598 · Feb 13, 2011

MJB said:
In UK, the Raven has long been considered a cliff-nester, although as you say inhabiting moors, from time to time a ground-nester, but in much of Europe it is a tree-nester, and it is these populations that are expanding their range eg on the eastern Austria/western Hungary border, where they are loosely colonial.

In the west of East Anglia, I understand a few pairs have colonised woodland/plantations. Your wandering bird might have simply responded to captive birds calling, or simply be carrying out a recce for a Festival performance of Edgar Allen Poe's poem...
MJB

Some nice info:t:

markgrubb · Feb 13, 2011

A pair of ravens bred successfully in Edinburgh this year raising one young-the first city record for a long, long time. I have seen them regularly near my house in Edinburgh for over a year and also over the local park. Having done a fair bit of Atlas work in the last few years they seem to be a species that has done well in Lothian and the Borders so perhaps dispersal and looking for new territories has brought them into the city. Certainly their breeding site in Edinburgh just yards from a well walked footpath was an eye opener to me

Lmc3598 · Feb 13, 2011

Hi markgrubb
Thanks for the info. Could you tell me exactly where this pair are? Unless there would be any problems with that e.g birds security. Would quite like to pop up some timw and see them.

chris butterworth · Feb 14, 2011

Raven were already nesting on Chester Cathedral / Town Hall at least 15 years ago and they are regular over the centre of Liverpool with birds nesting within 5 miles of Lime Street Station .

Chris

Mal92 · Feb 14, 2011

Hi
There is also a regular breeding pair on the Civic Centre in Cardiff City.

Cheshire Birder · Feb 14, 2011

The Ravens at the Tower of London have been in residence for many years. Legend has it that they remained silent at the execution of Ann Boleyn in 1535 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_ravens_of_the_Tower_of_London). At least six Ravens must remain at all times. According to prophecy - If the Tower of London ravens are lost or fly away, the Crown will fall and Britain with it.

CB

Lmc3598 · Feb 14, 2011

Cheshire Birder said:
The Ravens at the Tower of London have been in residence for many years. Legend has it that they remained silent at the execution of Ann Boleyn in 1535 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_ravens_of_the_Tower_of_London). At least six Ravens must remain at all times. According to prophecy - If the Tower of London ravens are lost or fly away, the Crown will fall and Britain with it.

CB

The ravens at the Tower of London aren't wild, free roaming birds which is what I was looking for. I have been to see them and they are quite entertaining to watch. Fell sorry for them how they have had their wings clipped and cant fly away:-C

terry jz · Feb 14, 2011

I saw a raven fly over Stevenage town centre only last week

Birdspotter · Feb 14, 2011

Cheshire Birder said:
At least six Ravens must remain at all times. According to prophecy - If the Tower of London ravens are lost or fly away, the Crown will fall and Britain with it.

CB

Sssshhh dont tell that to Osama bin-liner and his mates.

As Mark has said Raven's are doing well in Lothian at the moment. The Pentland Hills have a good population that is one such area, although not sure what the population in the southern upland hill ranges are like considering the Hen Harriers are blasted to death there.

jpscloud · Feb 15, 2011

I used to see a pair of ravens quite often over the Roaches on the Staffs border. I haven't been up there for a few years - I must go and have a look again. They do a lovely distinctive "Gruuukk" sound.

Sorry just realised this thread was about ravens in the city!

iolar · Feb 15, 2011

Theres a forest right by the coast near to where I live where 100's of Ravens gather . Not a mountain in sight.

Cheshire Birder · Feb 17, 2011

Lmc3598 said:
The ravens at the Tower of London aren't wild, free roaming birds which is what I was looking for. I have been to see them and they are quite entertaining to watch. Fell sorry for them how they have had their wings clipped and cant fly away:-C

The original birds will have been wild, although as you say the current birds are "clipped".

CB

Cheshire Birder · Feb 17, 2011

iolar said:
Theres a forest right by the coast near to where I live where 100's of Ravens gather . Not a mountain in sight.

On Anglesey, they have a huge roost number of up to 2000 birds in a conifer forest, which is within sight of the Snowdonia National Park.

CB

davercox · Feb 18, 2011

Ravens displaying over urban Torquay on Wednesday this week (seen during an Atlas TTV).
OK, I know Torquay isn't a city ... yet ...

Lmc3598 · Feb 18, 2011

davercox said:
Ravens displaying over urban Torquay on Wednesday this week (seen during an Atlas TTV).
OK, I know Torquay isn't a city ... yet ...

This reminds me of when I watched two hunting peregrines in Torquay. At first they were going for herring gulls, quite high up. Then they came lower down, a few meters above me, and tried to catch a pigeon, but were unsuccessful. The last I saw of them was when one flew from behind a building with a dead pigeon, and then then the other flew right up to it and stole the pigeon right out of it's claws!

But no more getting carried away, this thread is about ravens.

socialist plover · Feb 18, 2011

No data to back this up, but my feeling is that ravens are getting more and more common in urban and semi-urban settings. Or rather, their ranges are expanding back to where they would have been naturally after years of persecution, much the same as buzzards have relatively recently. I live in Bearsden on the outskirts of Glasgow, and have seen ravens several times from my house. I've also seen them flying over Maryhill and, once, over the Botanic gardens in Kelvingrove Park in Glasgow's west end.

How often do ravens do appear in the city? (1 Viewer)

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