They’re driving us Raven mad

Adult (left), chick (right)

If you haven’t noticed the young ravens around the place this season you must have industrial-strength earmuffs on or you are clinically deaf. Starting when the sun comes up the incessant squawking for food from the chicks doesn’t stop until the sun sets. A new family of Little Ravens (Corvus mellori) has taken up residence around the bird bath. It consists of mum, dad and two bawling chicks (more effective than any alarm clock). The chicks seem to be able to squawk even as food is being shoved down their throats.

Two types of raven inhabit the King Parrot Creek valley—the Australian Raven (Corvus coronoides) and the Little Raven. On first sight the difference is hard to pick. As the name suggests the Little Raven is slightly smaller than the Australian Raven with a smaller beak. The call of the Little Raven also lacks the drawn out ‘aaaaaaaaahh’ at the end.

Pictured are adult and chick at the bird bath. You can usually pick the chick by the gaping beak begging for food. And that squawking. Another sign is the eye colour. In young ravens the eye is brown. It then progresses through hazel and is white in the third year. I have also noticed (although I haven’t read it anywhere) that the beak of the chicks shows flashes of pink.