Myth vs Fact · MYTH·10

Myth: "Ravens Are Endangered"

Verdict: False

All ten raven species are currently Least Concern on the IUCN Red List. The Common Raven has been expanding its range in many parts of Europe and North America since legal protection was introduced in the 20th century. Regional populations face some pressures, but no raven species is endangered.

The Belief

Ravens are sometimes assumed to be rare or threatened — perhaps because of their dramatic appearance, cultural associations with mystery, or because people infrequently encounter them compared to crows. The belief may also reflect historical reality: ravens were genuinely rare in many parts of their range a century ago, and that historical scarcity may persist in cultural memory.

IUCN Conservation Status

[science] The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (the global standard for conservation status) classifies all species covered on this site as Least Concern as of 2024:1

Historical Persecution and Recovery

[science] Common Ravens were systematically persecuted across Europe and North America through the 19th and early 20th centuries. In England, they were extirpated from most of lowland areas by 1900. In the United States, they retreated to remote mountain and desert habitats under hunting pressure. Legal protection — the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 in the UK, and the Migratory Bird Treaty Act 1918 in the USA — ended this systematic persecution in most countries.2

Since then, Common Raven populations have recovered substantially. In Britain, ravens have recolonised England and Wales from their Welsh and western strongholds. In North America, they have expanded into suburban and urban areas previously absent from their range. The species is not endangered — in some ecosystems (the Mojave Desert, where ravens threaten desert tortoise populations), they have been classified as overabundant.

Where Ravens Face Pressures

Specific pressures exist in some areas, even if they do not threaten the species overall:

Related Pages

Frequently Asked Questions

Which raven species are threatened?

As of the 2024 IUCN assessment, all ten species covered on this site (Common, Thick-billed, White-necked, Chihuahuan, Australian, Forest, Little, Fan-tailed, Brown-necked Ravens, and Somali Crow) are listed as Least Concern. No raven species is currently classified as Endangered or Vulnerable. The Forest Raven and Little Raven have restricted ranges, but their populations are not currently in decline at a rate that would trigger a threat listing.

Have raven populations ever been threatened?

Yes — historically. Common Ravens were heavily persecuted across Europe and North America through the 19th and early 20th centuries, shot, trapped, and poisoned because of perceived threats to livestock and game. By the early 20th century they had been extirpated from most of lowland England and much of western Europe. Legal protection from the mid-20th century onwards allowed significant range recovery, and Common Raven populations have been expanding southward and into lowland areas across much of their former range.

Are ravens in decline anywhere?

Some regional populations face pressures: illegal persecution on UK grouse moors continues to suppress raven numbers below their natural density in some upland areas; habitat loss in specific desert regions may affect Fan-tailed and Brown-necked Raven populations. However, none of these regional pressures are severe enough to push any raven species toward a threatened status at present.

Sources

  1. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (2024). Species accounts for all ten raven species. iucnredlist.org. — conservation status assessments.
  2. Marzluff, J.M. & Angell, T. (2005). In the Company of Crows and Ravens. Yale University Press. — history of raven persecution and recovery.

[science] peer-reviewed study or field-guide data