# Black & White Raven?? What the....?



## Fulford15 (Oct 17, 2012)

Ok, I am terrified of birds. Saw this on my Facebook newsfeed, someone took a picture of a Black & White Raven! If you have ever been to Fort McMurray, Alberta, you will know that the Ravens are mutant sized here, and are the size of Bald Eagles LOL. Seeing this thing made my skin crawl... tried googling it and nothing came up. So weird... and creepy :shock: Maybe a raven bred with a magpie? Who knows! Thought I'd share... Reminds me of something Native...


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## WSArabians (Apr 14, 2008)

Weird. 
Photoshop, maybe?


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## Shropshirerosie (Jan 24, 2012)

Lovely - as I'm not terrified of birds, I think that's beautiful.

Better a black and white raven than a giant magpie though. One for sorrow, two for joy ..... what does a Giant one bring?


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## Shoebox (Apr 18, 2012)

Its gorgeous. Leucistic (white) ravens, while incredibly rare, do exist. Maybe a regular raven bred with a white raven? Could just be a mutation, too. Either way - It's incredible. I'm the opposite - I love birds, so this is really quite interesting to me!


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## LadyDreamer (Jan 25, 2008)

The White-winged Crows of Boxley Valley -- Arkansas Wildlife Photography Gallery and Blog
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Phly (Nov 14, 2012)

I ain't never seen a crow with white on it either. But the next county over has black squirrels, which I hear, are fairly out of the norm.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Missy May (Feb 18, 2012)

It looks like it could just be a magpie.

We have had both a pet magpie (rescue) and a pet Raven. Both area amazing birds, but ravens are just in a class of their own. It would be neat if they came in this "outfit", too.


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## stevenson (Sep 12, 2011)

that bird is really neat. they can have white in them, it is rare. 
very pretty crow/raven. The only time I dont like them is when they put things in the water troughs, and steal the shiny objects they see  faucet handles are some of thier favs..


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## Fulford15 (Oct 17, 2012)

Interesting!! I don't think it's a magpie, they have blue tails here and their tail feathers are very long and thin, look more so like a Blue Jay.

I am thinking your correct Shoebox, weird how pigmentation works...!


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## Chokolate (Nov 24, 2012)

It may just be a magpie - but very cool, all the same and excellent picture!

On the subject of magpies, in Term 4 last year there was an announcement over the loudspeaker at school about girls HAD to wear their panama hats if they were walking to the train station because a magpie was attacking students and the hats offered some protection. We came out in droves armed with umbrellas and lunchbox missiles .


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## Cat (Jul 26, 2008)

Phly said:


> I ain't never seen a crow with white on it either. But the next county over has black squirrels, which I hear, are fairly out of the norm.
> _Posted via Mobile Device_


Black squirrels are quite common - where I grew up in MI was swamped with the little ******s. 

As to the picture - I love birds and wish I could see it! Unfortunately all I'm seeing is a red X.


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## Missy May (Feb 18, 2012)

Chokolate said:


> It may just be a magpie - but very cool, all the same and excellent picture!
> 
> On the subject of magpies, in Term 4 last year there was an announcement over the loudspeaker at school about girls HAD to wear their panama hats if they were walking to the train station because a magpie was attacking students and the hats offered some protection. We came out in droves armed with umbrellas and lunchbox missiles .


Wow, how funny! They could actually do some real harm if they wanted too.

On our old farm, my daughter found two baby magpies some distance from the house that had fallen from their nest. They were very young. I cared for them. I didn't think either would survive, but one, "Maggie", did...and she (no telling her real sex) grew into a very beautiful, loud, fun-loving and demanding bird. 

Here was the _amazing_ part....the parents _located_ _and waited_ for Maggie!!! No kidding. She was several months old before I realized that a pair of magpies that sat in the tree outside the room her cage was in and called - were not just _any_ magpies (there were many magpies about on any given day, making their usual noises), they were her parents. The pair would try to get as close as possible to the window, and call and call. Maggie couldn't yet fly by our estimation when we realised this. She was a spoiled "pet" with no survival skills, so we felt it best if she could at least fly before we turned her over to them. So we waited (over a month) until she could fly and on one chosen day we put her outside and opened the door to her cage. The parents never "gave up" and were _right there, _waiting. Initially, she did _not_ want to leave the cage..it was sad. We went inside and watched out the window. One parent immediatly flew and perched ontop of her cage. After a long period of time...they _finally _coaxed her out and she hopped along the ground as they guarded and escorted her off. She didn't seem to want to try and fly, although she had been able to "flutter/hop" inside.

How they knew it was their child...we will never know. Regardless of their other habits...they are AMAZING parents!!!


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## Shoebox (Apr 18, 2012)

Chokolate said:


> It may just be a magpie - but very cool, all the same and excellent picture!
> 
> On the subject of magpies, in Term 4 last year there was an announcement over the loudspeaker at school about girls HAD to wear their panama hats if they were walking to the train station because a magpie was attacking students and the hats offered some protection. We came out in droves armed with umbrellas and lunchbox missiles .


If you look up images of a Magpie in Flight, the white pattern on them is very different. Not to mention their tails are COMPLETELY different. A crow's tail is fanned out, all the feathers the same length (as well as a raven's) and the Magpie's get much longer towards the center.... the bird in the picture is definitely either a crow or a raven. 

Also, that story reminds me of the barn swallows at my school that would build nests over the doors and angrily divebomb the students that went in and out of them... Every year! If they don't like it maybe they should move! Silly birds.

A magpie, for comparison:


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## Fulford15 (Oct 17, 2012)

LOL and those stories are why I don't like birds, they just give my the willys :shock: Yes, the magpies we have here look like this, their tail feathers are very long :











Ravens/Crows are very intellegent, they mock everything. The couple I bought my horse from had a Crow that someone had hit with a car and left at the vet's office the wife worked at. She took it home and it became their pet! He could talk very well, say the horses names, students names, everything. It was kinda creepy riding Turly and hearing the Crow yell at him and me LOL.


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## Saddlebag (Jan 17, 2011)

Why not write to the Edmonton zoo, att. Ornithologist and include a pic.


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## GamingGrrl (Jan 16, 2013)

Beautiful!

My dad's co-worker once picked up a baby crow in the parking lot of their work, worried that it was going to get run over. He moved it maybe 5 feet so it was under the tree it fell out of, and I guess Mommy Crow and Daddy Crow didn't like that so much because they swoop him and caw and generally harass him all the way across the parking lot every morning and night. It's been going on for years. :lol: no good deed goes unpunished.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Fulford15 (Oct 17, 2012)

Saddlebag said:


> Why not write to the Edmonton zoo, att. Ornithologist and include a pic.


 
That is a good idea!! I am sure they could have an explaination... Everytime I am outside I am looking for this darn thing now lol! Although, I am really not sure about the Edmonton Zoo, I actually didn't even know it existed till you said that (only been to Edmonton a handful of times)... Only know of the Calgary Zoo lol! :lol:


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