Ravens

Raven fascinate me. Almost every day a see a few fly overhead and hear them croaking and clicking. I invite them down for some dog food but they never stop in. I decided to visit them in one of their popular habitats.

Ravens

An Unkindness

Whenever I am outside in the yard, I'll see a few ravens fly over. I can hear them croaking and making clicking noises. I'll croak right back at them and invite them to come down for a bite of dog food or whatever treats I can think of  but so far no takers of my offer.

They don't get the respect they deserve. A group of ravens have been called an unkindness, a rave, a treachery or a conspiracy. How nasty is that? I'll  choose flock.

I know where a lot of them live and I decided to do some birdwatching.

Oink

Pig
A pigpen offers plenty of extra food for hungry ravens

A local farm seems to be a mecca for a lot of ravens, crows, a few bald eagles and a few hawks. There is plenty of left over food in the pigpens and I'm sure a steady supply of rodents for the raptors.

It is a noisy place with croaks, clicks, whistles and squeals. One bird was a bit messy.

Messy Bird
A messy eater

Most of the ravens were far out of the reach of my telephoto lens, but I was enjoying seeing their aerial antics. They are amazingly acrobatic. It appears that they are just doing it all for fun. They weren't attacking each other but seemed be showing off. I think it was play. Who knows?

Ravens
Ravens in Flight

The Trickster

The raven is seen as a trickster by native cultures in the Pacific Northwest. They are intelligent and resourceful. Hopefully I'll get some to stop by my yard in their next flyover.

Raven
Raven keeps watch