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23

Little Raven (Corvus mellori) Size: 48-50 cm Weight: 425-650 g

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Similar species

Description     Classification     Distribution     Sightings     Photos     Breeding     Nest     Eggs     Behaviour     Food     Call/s

Physical description Click here for a physical description Little Ravens are medium-sized Australian members of the Corvus family (corvids). Their plumage is glossy-black on the back, plain black in front. The ear coverts and shoulders are a bit lighter than the rest of the plumage. Their appearance depends mostly on the angle of infalling sunlight. The length of the bill about equals the size of the head. In straight, level flight the tail is long and straight, with a squarish tip with rounded corners. The eyes have whitish irises. The straight, slender bill is dark-grey. The legs and feet are also dark-grey, with pink foot soles. Juveniles have fleshy gapes, dark irises and a shorter bill and tail. Twitcher's tip The correct identification of corvids in the field is notoriously difficult. Compared with other Australian corvids, Little Ravens have a medium-length bill (similar to the size of the head) and a squarish tip of the tail with rounded corners. If visible, e.g. when ruffled by wind, the base of feathers of ravens is grey (while those of crows have white bases). The transition from black to grey is gradual (while in crows the transition from black to white is abrupt). Most of the birds from the Corvus family ("corvids") commonly called "crows" in South-East Australia are in fact "ravens". The most common member of this family in (near-)coastal South-East Australia is the "Australian Raven". Little Ravens usually stay inland.

Taxonomy, classification See Little Raven at Wikipedia .

Range, habitat, finding this species Click here for information on habitat and range The overall distribution of this species can be assessed, and specific locations where birds have been spotted can be found, based on individual sighting reports submitted by birdwatchers to ebird.org . The global distribution of the Little Raven is available HERE . NB: Reports on ebird of birds submitted by birdwatchers from the Australian Outback tend to be clustered along roads and public areas such as camp grounds; in such cases their distribution is not a good representation of the overall distribution of the species. Little Ravens are endemic to Australia. They live in the South and South-east of the Australian continent. They are found on Eyre peninsula, SA, and eastward from there, including the south-eastern corner of SA, most of VIC and inland NSW, except the Paroo catchment and anywhere North of the Darling River. They are only occasionally found on the coastal fringe East of Melbourne and along the NSW coast. Little Ravens can be found in many different types of habitat, except dense forest.

Sightings Click here for sighting information If the identification is correct, Little Ravens were first seen by us in 2006, 20 km South-West of Narrabri, NSW, and again in August 2008, 20 km East of Narrabri and in August 2010 30 km South of Narrabri. Little Ravens were also spotted by us in the Gammon Ranges, near Balcanoona, SA, in March 2008. M. Eaton reports finding Little Ravens at the Botanical Garden, Melbourne, VIC, in October 2017. R. Clough reports seeing Little Ravens regularly at Raywood, near Bendigo, VIC.

Photos

ADULT

Sex unknown

Frontal portrait of a Little Raven
[Near Hawker, SA, March 2008]

Near-lateral portrait of a Little Raven
[Near Hawker, SA, March 2008]

Lateral view of a Little Raven
[Near Hawker, SA, March 2008]

Near-dorsal view of a Little Raven (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Botanical Garden, Melbourne, VIC, October 2017]

The absence of pronounced hackles, the size of the bill and the shape of the tail all indicate that this bird is a Little Raven
[Near Narrabri, NSW, August 2010]

IMMATURE/JUVENILE

Frontal view of a juvenile Little Raven - note the pink gape (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Botanical Garden, Melbourne, VIC, October 2017]

Behaviour

Social behaviour: Communal/roaming

Mobility: Sedentary/dispersive

Elementary unit: Flock

D. Johnston reports observing a Little Raven in Baradine, NSW, scavenging food and putting it in a hidden cache for later consumption.

Food, Diet

Adults: Omnivore

Dependents: ?

Water intake: Daily?

Like all members of the Corvus family known to us, Little Ravens are omnivores and scavengers.

Near-frontal view of a juvenile Little Raven plucking a caterpillar (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Botanical Garden, Melbourne, VIC, October 2017]

Although probably already dead, the immature Little Raven's prey is still trying to "abseil" - click on image to see the caterpillar hanging at the end of its silken thread (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Botanical Garden, Melbourne, VIC, October 2017]

Call(s)/Song

For this species we have recorded the following call(s)/song. The interpretation of their meaning is our own; comments and suggestions for improvement are welcome.

litrave_20221217_2.mp3	(NW NSW)	"Conversational" + contact calls (mobile flock)	© MD
litrave_20221217.mp3	(NW NSW)	"Conversational" calls (mobile flock)	© MD
litrave_20220926.mp3	(NW NSW)	?	© MD

These pages are largely based on our own observations and those of our contributors. The structure of these bird pages is explained HERE. For more salient facts on any bird species please refer to a field guide.

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Disclaimer: Comments are always welcome. We give no guarantee that the information presented on these pages is always correct or up-to-date. External links are marked as such and we take no responsibility for the contents of external pages. All images on this site are protected by copyright & used by permission of the respective owners. If you wish to reproduce them or any of the material presented on this web site, please contact us: We hereby acknowledge the original custodians of the land which is described on these pages, including the Gomeroi/Gamilaraay people of the North-west Slopes and Plains of NSW, and the traditional owners of other lands and nations within this country. We acknowledge elders past, present and emerging. Sovereignty was never ceded.          Last updated: Sun, 18 December 2022, 20:04 +00:00