THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. 
and shoot a Raven if the opportunity arises. But excepting during the above- 
mentioned times they do little damage, the worst probably being the taking 
of chickens, young turkeys and eggs, at which they are experts, and their 
depredations in the fowl-yard are only too well knovm to most people living 
in the country where Ravens abound. The bird is therefore condemned by 
most people as a curse to the country and probably not without reason, but 
on the other hand it has much in its favour, so I will now mention some of its 
good traits: the bird being a scavenger, clears up a vast amount of offal and 
carcases of dead animals, destroying thousands of noxious insects, maggots 
and even blow-flies themselves. Dead stock and rabbits, etc., are so destroyed 
that nothing but skin and bone remain, and the maggots are destroyed that 
would otherwise have entered the ground and escaped eventually to do their 
damage later on. I consider that the Raven is our best natural enemy of the 
blow-fly and is also a most effective enemy of grasshoppers in certain stages. 
While there is no question as to the damage done in some districts to ewes 
and lambs in bad seasons, at other times of the year it is a friend in disguise, 
so if it w'ould only leave the sheep alone it would be one of our most useful birds. 
For some years off and on I have been trying to make a study of the colour 
of its eyes, but so far have not been able to come to any definite decision. At 
one time I thought the eyes might turn w'hite with age, but a friend took me 
to see a bird in captivity with browm eyes, and upon questioning the owner, 
he informed me that he had had the bird for many years, and the eyes were 
always brown. This bird, I might mention, is a splendid talker. Great numbers 
of these birds come to my slaughter-yard to feed and if not interfered with 
become very daring. This yard is only about fifty yards from a drayshed, 
through the walls of which I have cut loop-holes to shoot them with a small 
rifle, and from here have shot dozens of them and find that just as many have 
brown eyes as white. But aU which I have shot at a nest have had white eyes, 
while I have examined many during the non-breeding season with white eyes. 
They are most difficult birds to poison; if they take anything containing 
strychnine they just simply throw' it up again immediately'; fat and phosphorus 
are the best, but they soon become very' cunning about it. I once took a 
bullock s head and offal from my slaughter-y'ard out into a paddock and smeared 
it with fat and phosphorus ; after the first day' not a Raven came near it, and 
it all just simply decayed where I placed it. Another time, as the Ravens 
were destroying eggs, I took a fowl’s egg and put some cyanide in it and placed 
it in the open. A Raven soon discovered it and in a few' minutes fifteen were 
standing round it in a circle. Then one w'alked up, had a few' pecks at it, 
walked aw'ay and was sick ; then it flew away, the rest follow'ed and the egg 
w'as left there till I smashed it.” 
394 
