RAVEN. 



259 



PASSERES. 



COR VID^F. 



CoRVUs coRAx, Liiina3us.* 

 THE KAVEN. 



Corvus corax. 



CoRVUs, Linna'usf.—Tjeak liard, stout, compressed, straight at tlie base, 

 arched towards the point, and sliarp at the edges. Nostrils basal, generally 

 hidden Ijy stiff feathers directed forwards. Wings long and graduated ; the first 

 prinjary much shorter than the second, but more than half as long as the third, 

 the fourth the longest. Tail more or less graduated. Feet strong ; tarsus longer 

 than the middle toe, to which the outer toe is united as far as its first joint ; 

 claws strong, curved and sharp. 



This, by far the largest British species of the Order 

 Passeres, and among its exotic members only equalled in 

 size by two or three allied forms, has been from very ancient 

 times one of the best known of birds. The wide range of 

 the Kaven in the northern hemisphere has doubtless also 



* Syst. Nat. Ed. 12, i. p. 1.55 (1766). t Lor. cit. 



