Common Raven pair in Hyattsville

[Beth Kantrowitz]

This morning, in the rain just outside my yoga studio, I heard that unmistakable call that is halfway between a crow’s caw and a goose’s honk. The bird was up on a telephone pole and unkempt from the rain, but I could see the heavy bill with the feathers at the base, and when it flew the wedge tail was clear. Then I saw the other one and they both flew away. 

I’ve seen them in PA, but never in MD, and glad to see it was a pair. 

-Beth in Hyattsville

Sent from my iPhone

On Feb 16, 2025, at 5:35 AM, mdbi...@googlegroups.com wrote:



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• Common Goldeneye - 1 Update
• Winter crow roost near New Carrollton metro? Located! - 1 Update

Common Goldeneye

Pat <pval...@gmail.com>: Feb 15 12:38PM -0500 I was surprised to see a Common Goldeneye this morning among the Mallards and Buffleheads. Yard bird #127. The Northern Pintail is still around. Also had Ruddy Duck and Hooded Mergansers.Looks like the leucistic Mallard found herself a mate. It's cute to see all the ducks pairing off at this time of year. So much head bobbing!Pat

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Winter crow roost near New Carrollton metro? Located!

james wilson <jfwil...@gmail.com>: Feb 15 10:43AM -0500 I found the New Carrollton winter crow roost current location: From the metro entrance intersection of Pennsy Drive and Corporate Drive, it's down Pennsy to the southwest less than 1/2 mile, just after Pennsy crosses Highway 50, just before Ardwick Ardmore Road. Right across from Royal Farms. Trees along the Hwy 50 overpass and further in.   Thanks so much to those who suggested where to look.   I was there this morning about 40 minutes before sunrise. The crows got very noisy and active (mix of American and Fish crows). The usual winter crow roost morning activity: several times a great flapping of wings and cawing as hundreds take off, make a few big circles filling the sky, and then come back down to further discuss the plans for the day. Really a sight to see (and hear!) if you've never experienced it.   And this show is closing soon! The weather radar history at North Bethesda suggests the numbers fall off the radar each year around February 20.   Thanks again all,   Jim

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[Cass]

There's a pair that's nested at the former site of Walter Reed for the past few years. They raised 2-3 chicks last year before dispersal out of originally 4 chicks. I've seen the pair around Downtown Silver Spring and Shepard Park and it's possible they range all the way to Hyattsville, though you might have a different pair. It would be exciting if it was one of their chicks from previous years. My hope is that ravens will keep increasing in our area, but I also fear continued development at the old Walter Reed site as it's surprisingly good for birds. Even saw a kestrel there last year!

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[Rick Borchelt]

I’m pretty sure this pair sticks pretty close to Hyattsville, although I have yet to discover the nesting site. 

On Feb 16, 2025, at 1:48 pm, Cass <enby...@gmail.com> wrote:



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[Marcia Watson]

The breeding distribution of Common Raven has exploded across MD over the past 10-15-20 years.  Attached are distribution maps from the first (1996) and second (2010) Breeding Bird Atlases (two black and white images) and also the Common Raven map from the Third Breeding Bird Atlas (multi-color), which just completed data collection on Dec. 31st. 

As you can see, the observation pins on the color map showing current distribution are so dense in the Baltimore-Washington region that they obscure the map place names!  And yet Common Raven was totally absent as a breeding bird in the Baltimore-Washington region in the first (data collected 1983-1987) and second (data collected 2002-2006) Atlases.

Ravens have even started to colonize the Eastern Shore, around Chestertown in Kent County, for example. This was formerly unthinkable.

It’s really been a remarkable expansion, which the late Rick Blom (editor of one of the early editions of the Nat Geo Field Guide) predicted when he first saw a Common Raven flying along the Susquehanna in Cecil County in the 1990s.

We have them almost every time we go out around our house on Loch Raven in northern Baltimore County. I think I first saw them in the Baltimore area when driving the Baltimore Beltway across the Key Bridge circa 2010, maybe earlier. And they nested at Duckett Dam (Rocky Gorge Reservoir) in Prince George’s County circa 2010 and later. That might have been the first documented nest in the DC area. The nest site was visible from I-95 if you happened to be stuck in traffic and could take a good look. 

FYI, on the multi-color BBA3 map, the red pins marked with a C indicate a confirmed breeding site, purple with R is a probable breeding site, medium blue with P is a possible breeding site, and O in pale blue is an observation with no breeding recorded. You can visit this interactive map at https://ebird.org/atlasmddc/map/comrav and zoom in to see more detail for your neighborhood, or zoom out to see the whole state. 

Marcia 

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Marcia Watson

Phoenix, MD 

On Feb 16, 2025, at 1:48 PM, Cass <enby...@gmail.com> wrote:



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[Beth Kantrowitz]

I’ll keep an eye out for them. It was at the corner of 42nd Place and Gallatin Street, by the St. Jerome’s school and church. 

Sent from my iPhone

On Feb 16, 2025, at 2:22 PM, Rick Borchelt <rbor...@gmail.com> wrote:



[James Tyler Bell]

Look for a cell tower or a bridge/overpass. They like to nest high and cell towers are convenient.

Tyler Bell
jtyle...@yahoo.com
California, Maryland

https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/mdbirding/41129849-C2E1-4F1B-81C0-E363FB38365D%40comcast.net

.

[Rick Borchelt]

That's what's been a little strange.  This part of lower College Park/Riverdale/Hyattsville doesn't havy any such good candidates.  But the hunt is still on!  Saw them displaying/pair bonding last week. 

To view this discussion visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/mdbirding/641575611.718645.1739742229816%40mail.yahoo.com.

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Rick Borchelt
College Park, MD
preferred personal email:  rborchelt |AT| gmail |DOT| com

http://leplog.wordpress.com

[Denise Ryan]

Beth,

Yes, ravens are back. In 2023, I would frequently observe a raven at Prince George's Co. Hospital around sunrise. This past year I saw a pair flying together over South Columbia Park/Kentland Community Center in Landover. They are around and are probably breeding.

Denise Ryan

Cheverly, MD