FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS. 



THE RAVEN 



Corvus Corax. 



LTHOUGH the name of the 

 Raven is as familiar to the 

 world as that of the Lark, 

 there are few indeed who have 

 seen one in a state of nature, 

 and this for various reasons — 

 notably because they are now 

 particularly scarce, and again 

 because they affect certain dis- 

 tricts. Although there may 

 be other localities equally well 

 adapted to support them, 

 nothing will induce them to 

 forsake their old haunts. For 

 instance, a pair of Ravens have 

 built and bred in the chalk 

 cliff of Beachy Head for many 

 years, and the systematic taking 

 of their young does not deter 

 them from making fresh ven- 

 tures on the same spot. Should 

 either of a pair of Ravens be 

 killed, another partner soon pre- 

 sents itself j and even if both 



