Corvidae Skull Replica or Common Raven measures 4.7 inches. Common Raven Skull Replica is museum quality polyurethane cast made in USA. 2-part skull (separate cranium and jaw).
The Corvidae or Common raven is a large all-black passerine bird. It is the most widely distributed of all corvids, found across the Northern Hemisphere.
It is one of the two largest corvids, alongside the thick-billed raven, and is possibly the heaviest passerine bird; at maturity, the Common raven averages 25 inches in length and 3.2 pounds)in mass.
Corvidae or Common ravens have coexisted with humans for thousands of years and in some areas have been so numerous that people have regarded them as pests.
Part of their success as a species is due to their omnivorous diet; they are extremely versatile and opportunistic in finding sources of nutrition, feeding on carrion, insects, cereal grains, berries, fruit, small animals, nesting birds, and food waste.
A mature common raven ranges between 21 to 28 in. and has a wingspan of 46 to 60 in. Recorded weights range from 1.52 to 4.96 lb. thus making the common raven one of the heaviest passerines.
Corvidae or Common raven from colder regions such as the Himalayas and Greenland are generally larger with slightly larger bills, while those from warmer regions are smaller with proportionally smaller bills.
Representative of the size variation in the species, ravens from California weighed an average of 1.73 lb., those from Alaska weighed an average of 2.50 lb. and those from Nova Scotia weighed an average of 2.71 lb.
The bill is large and slightly curved, with a culmen length of 2.2 to 3.3 in., easily one of the largest bills amongst passerines. It has a longish, strongly graduated tail, at 7.9 to 10.4 in., and mostly black iridescent plumage, and a dark brown iris.
The Corvidae or Common raven throat feathers are elongated and pointed and the bases of the neck feathers are pale brownish-grey. The legs and feet are good-sized, with a tarsus length of 2.4 to 2.8 in. Juvenile plumage is similar but duller with a blue-grey iris.
The Corvidae or Common ravens can thrive in varied climates; indeed this species has the largest range of any member of the genus. They range throughout the Holarctic from Arctic and temperate habitats in North America and Eurasia to the deserts of North Africa, and to islands in the Pacific Ocean.
In the United Kingdom, the Common raven’s range is currently increasing. It favors mountainous or coastal terrain, but can also be found in parks with tall trees suitable for use as habitation.
Its population is at its most dense in the north and west of the country, though the species is expanding its population southwards.
Most Corvidae or Common ravens prefer wooded areas with large expanses of open land nearby, or coastal regions for their nesting sites and feeding grounds.
In some areas of dense human population, such as California in the United States, they take advantage of a plentiful food supply and have seen a surge in their numbers.
