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Common raven
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=== Breeding === [[File:Ravens nest Lastef.jpg|thumb|Young on a nest – Hvítserkur, Iceland]] [[File:Corvus corax tingitanus MHNT 232 HdB Djebel Messaad Algerie.jpg|thumb|Eggs of ''Corvus corax'']] [[File:Korp - Common raven - (Corvus corax) - Ystad - 2025.jpg|thumb|A pair with 3–4 young on top of a high-voltage pylon in [[Ystad]].]] Juveniles begin to court at a very early age, but may not bond for another two or three years. Aerial acrobatics, demonstrations of intelligence, and ability to provide food are key behaviours of courting. Once paired, they tend to nest together for life, usually in the same location.<ref name="Oregon">{{cite web |url=http://www.oregonzoo.org/Cards/BirdsOfPrey/commonraven.htm|title= Oregon Zoo Animals: Common Raven|access-date=2007-05-19 |work= Oregon Zoo| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070429120446/http://www.oregonzoo.org/Cards/BirdsOfPrey/commonraven.htm| archive-date = April 29, 2007}}</ref> Instances of non-monogamy have been observed in common ravens, by males visiting a female's nest when her mate is away.<ref name="Heinrich, B. 1999 pp 119–120"/> Breeding pairs must have a territory of their own before they begin nest-building and reproduction, and thus they aggressively defend a territory and its food resources. Nesting territories vary in size according to the density of food resources in the area.<ref name="Boarman_Heinrich"/> The nest is a deep bowl made of large sticks (up to 150 cm long and 2.5 cm thick<ref name="Snow"/>) and twigs, bound with an inner layer of roots, mud, and bark and lined with a softer material, such as [[deer]] fur. The nest is usually placed in a large tree or on a cliff ledge, or less frequently in old buildings or utility poles.<ref>[[#Savage|Savage]], p. 35</ref> Females usually lay between four to six (rarely two to seven) pale bluish-green, brown-blotched eggs.<ref name="Snow"/> Incubation is about 18 to 21 days, by the female only. The male may stand or crouch over the young, sheltering but not actually [[brooding]] them.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Gwinner |first=Eberhard |date=April 1965 |title=Beobachtungen über Nestbau und Brutpflege des Kolkraben (''Corvus corax'' L.) in Gefangenschaft |journal=Journal of Ornithology |volume=106 |issue=2 |pages=145–178 |doi=10.1007/BF01793758|bibcode= |s2cid=22796437 |language=de}}</ref> The young [[fledge]] at 35 to 49 days, and are fed by both parents. They stay with their parents for another six months after fledging.<ref>[[#Goodwin|Goodwin]], p. 141</ref> In most of their range, egg-laying begins in late January or February,<ref name="Snow"/> but it can be as late as April in colder climates such as [[Greenland]] and [[Tibet]]. In Pakistan, egg-laying takes place in December,<ref name="Helm"/> but in north Africa (subspecies ''C. c. tingitanus''), later than in Europe, in late March or early April.<ref name="Snow"/> Eggs and hatchlings are preyed on, rarely, by large [[hawk]]s and [[eagle]]s, large [[owl]]s, [[marten]]s and [[canid]]s. The adults, which are very rarely preyed upon, are often successful in defending their young from these predators, due to their numbers, large size and cunning.<ref name=adw>{{cite web |access-date=2008-06-03 |vauthors=Berg R, Dewey T |year=1999 |publisher=University of Michigan |url=http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Corvus_corax.html |title=''Corvus corax''|work=Animal Diversity Web}}</ref> They have been observed dropping stones on potential predators that venture close to their nests.<ref>{{cite journal |journal=Condor |title=The apparent use of rocks by a raven in nest defense |first=Stewart W. |last=Janes |url=http://sora.unm.edu/sites/default/files/journals/condor/v078n03/p0409-p0409.pdf |volume=78 |issue=3 |pages=409 |year=1976 |access-date=2009-03-26 |doi=10.2307/1367704|jstor=1367704}}</ref> Common ravens can be very long-lived, especially in captive or protected conditions; [[Ravens of the Tower of London|individuals at the Tower of London]] have lived for more than 40 years.<ref name="Boarman_Heinrich"/> Their lifespans in the wild are shorter, typically 10 to 15 years. The longest known lifespan of a [[bird ringing|ringed]] wild common raven was 23 years, 3 months,<ref name=euroring>{{cite web |url=http://www.euring.org/data_and_codes/longevity-voous.htm |title=European Longevity Records |publisher=European Union for Bird Ringing |access-date=5 April 2011}}</ref> which among passerines only is surpassed by a few Australian species such as the [[satin bowerbird]].<ref>[[Australian Bird and Bat Banding Scheme]] ''[http://www.environment.gov.au/cgi-bin/biodiversity/abbbs/abbbs-search.pl?taxon_id=378 Satin Bowerbird]''</ref>
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