Editing Common raven (section)

{{Short description|Large, black, passerine bird of the Northern Hemisphere}}
{{Redirect|Corvus corax||Corvus Corax (disambiguation)}}
{{About||the butterfly called the common raven|Papilio castor{{!}}''Papilio castor''}}
{{pp-move|small=yes}}
{{Use British English |date=August 2020}}
{{Speciesbox
| fossil_range = {{fossilrange|Middle Pleistocene|Recent}}
| image = Corvus corax ad berlin 090516.jpg
| image_caption = Nominate ''C. c. corax'' in [[Berlin]], [[Germany]]
| image2 = Common Raven Grand Teton National Park.ogg
| image2_caption = Call of ''C. c. sinuatus'' recorded in [[Grand Teton National Park]]
| status = LC
| status_system = IUCN3.1
| status_ref = <ref name="iucn status 12 November 2021">{{cite iucn |author=BirdLife International |date=2017 |title=''Corvus corax'' |volume=2017 |page=e.T22706068A113271893 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2017-1.RLTS.T22706068A113271893.en |access-date=12 November 2021}}</ref><!--most recent assessment still in Jan 2022-->
| status2 = G5
| status2_system = TNC
| status2_ref = <ref name="NatureServe">{{cite web|title=Corvus corax|url=https://explorer.natureserve.org/Taxon/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.103734/Corvus_corax|website=[[NatureServe]] Explorer|access-date=18 July 2024}}</ref>
| taxon = Corvus corax
| authority = [[Carl Linnaeus|Linnaeus]], [[10th edition of Systema Naturae|1758]]
| subdivision_ranks = Subspecies
| subdivision = 8–11, see ''[[#Classification|Classification]]''
| range_map = CorvusCoraxIUCN.svg
| range_map_caption = Common raven range{{leftlegend|#00FF00|Breeding|outline=gray}} {{leftlegend|#008000|Resident|outline=gray}} {{leftlegend|#007FFF|Non-breeding|outline=gray}} 
}}

The '''common raven''' or '''northern raven''' ('''''Corvus corax''''') is a large all-black [[passerine]] bird. It is the most widely distributed of all [[Corvidae|corvids]], found across the [[Northern Hemisphere]]. There are 11 accepted [[subspecies]] with little variation in appearance, although recent research has demonstrated significant genetic differences among populations from various regions. It is one of the two largest corvids, alongside the [[thick-billed raven]], and is the heaviest passerine bird; at maturity, the common raven averages {{convert|63|cm|in|abbr=off}} in length and {{convert|1.47|kg|lb|abbr=off}} in weight, though up to {{cvt|2|kg}} in the heaviest individuals. Although their typical lifespan is considerably shorter, common ravens can live more than 23 years in the wild. Young birds may travel in [[Flocks of birds|flocks]] but later [[mate for life]], with each [[mated pair]] defending a [[territory (animal)|territory]].

Common ravens have coexisted with humans for thousands of years and in some areas have been so numerous that people have regarded them as [[pest (organism)|pests]]. Part of their success as a species is due to their [[omnivore|omnivorous diet]]; they are extremely versatile and [[Opportunism#Biological|opportunistic]] in finding sources of nutrition, feeding on [[carrion]], insects, cereal grains, berries, fruit, small animals, nesting birds, and food waste. Some notable feats of problem-solving provide evidence that the common raven is unusually [[intelligence|intelligent]].

Over the centuries, the [[Cultural depictions of ravens|raven has been the subject]] of mythology, folklore, art, and literature. In many cultures, including the indigenous cultures of [[Norse mythology|Scandinavia]], ancient Ireland and Wales, [[Bhutan]], the [[Indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast|northwest coast of North America]], and [[Indigenous peoples of Siberia|Siberia]] and northeast Asia, the common raven has been revered as a spiritual figure or godlike creature.