BOTW 10/25 - 10/29

spooky bird edition

Ok so this week’s bird has been honored as the BOTW before. But because it is halloween time, it is getting featured once again. With some updated spooky facts.

This week’s bird is the: Common Raven

A big crow… oh wait, no that’s a raven!

Non-spooky facts:

1) Ravens are bigger than crows, with a larger beak. They are usually found alone, a fact that can often help in identification.

2) Ravens are also widely distributed... and I mean WIDE. These birds can be found at almost every longitude on Earth. 

3) In the United States, these birds were associated with bison and wolves prior to their disappearance from the American West.

Spooky facts:

4) Birds + Halloween = E.A. Poe’s “The Raven.” According to SparkNotes, the Raven in this famous poem that every high-schooler has to read represents death, grief, and loss. Good stuff.

5) These birds terrorize other living creatures. Nothing is safe with these barbarians around. They mostly scavenge their food, but also hunt mammals, baby birds, and newborn lambs - no joke.

6) Because of their intelligence, and probably the psycho eating habits described above, Ravens play an important but multifaceted symbolic role in both Western and Native American cultures. Various Native American tribes have similar stories that center on the Raven, with the Raven often representing a mysterious trickster and creator.

“why is there a bird in my house?”

Have a SPOOKY week!