Still no eagle, but I did see a Common Raven fly over Catch the Wind on Saturday (10/15). The large black bird was quickly flying north while being pursued by two crows, one of the smaller corvids flying above it, the other dive-bombing it from behind!

You may be surprised to hear that I’ve seen more eagles fly over the Museum than I have ravens. In the past three years I’ve witnessed 5 Bald Eagles over the Museum’s airspace. I’ve only seen a Common Raven on two occasions, last December and last Friday.

As I’ve said in this journal before, just because I haven’t seen a particular bird doesn’t mean that it hasn’t stopped by, or flown over. Many fly-bys escape detection by me because I’m under the forest canopy much of the time and don’t have a clear view of the sky, or because I’m simply not looking up at the time they fly over (although I try to keep one eye to the sky at all times). I would have missed the passage of an Osprey last fall had it not been for a Pied-billed Grebe glancing skyward thereby alerting me to the fish hawk above.

Ravens, though, seem to be rather vocal and both times that I’ve seen them here, I heard them first. So, if you hear a rather loud, deep,  croaking sound, look up, there may be a raven overhead.