RAVENS. 
223 
the young ones are sufficiently matured to take care of 
themselves, the old ones invariably drive them away, 
and live independently. We have noticed their 
hostility to the Jackdaws and other birds daring to 
intrude on their favourite haunts ; they are them- 
selves, however, occasionally very outrageous ma- 
rauders on the property of others. Between Rooks 
and Ravens, if a rookery perchance is within visiting 
distance of a Raven s abode, there is eternal warfare ; 
and no wonder, for they will venture to attack the 
very nests, and carry off the unfledged Rooks as food 
for their own young; and those who are partial to 
rookeries, have found it necessary to shoot the 
Ravens, and destroy their nests, as the only effectual 
means of keeping peace amongst the Rooks. But 
notwithstanding the Ravens superior courage, he 
does not always succeed ; for not only Rooks, hut 
Carrion Crows will sometimes put them to flight. 
A person once heard an uncommon chattering and 
clamour proceeding from a tree, and going near, to 
learn the cause, observed no less than three Ravens 
successively issue from the tree, followed by a single 
Crow, which pursued and drove them fairly off. 
Generally speaking, they are solitary birds, the 
same pair only remaining together; but occasionally 
this is not the case, particularly in the northern parts 
of Europe, where they are more abundant, and are 
often seen in greater numbers. Thus, in the month 
of June, 1832, a party leaving the bay of Kirkwall, 
in the Orkney Islands, north of Scotland, counted 
twenty-four of these birds passing over their heads, 
flying towards the north; they were very near to 
each other, and followed in the same way as Rooks 
