Chapter 5 Feeding Ecology of the Australian Raven on Rottnest Island

Third Year
Adult (3+)
White Black Black Glossy blue-black. Wing
and tail fea<strong>the</strong>rs broad
and rounded.
38
55.6-70 310-361 170-205
Adult Male White Black Black Glossy blue-black 55.6-70 323-361 183-205
Adult
Female
White Black Black Glossy blue-black 56-61.7
310-344 170-198
Table 3.1: Morphological characteristics used to age and sex <strong>Australian</strong> <strong>Raven</strong>s on Rottnest Island with range for
each age class, and ranges for adult males and females (Storr and Johnstone 2004; Higgins et al. 2006),
The plumage <strong>of</strong> juvenile birds is much less glossy than adults with a blackish-brown colour.
These dull fea<strong>the</strong>rs are replaced with glossy blue-black fea<strong>the</strong>rs during each moult until
reaching maturity at three years, where <strong>the</strong> plumage is all-over glossy blue-black. In addition,
<strong>the</strong> characteristic elongated fea<strong>the</strong>rs on <strong>the</strong> throat (hackles) become denser and longer as birds
mature. <strong>Raven</strong>s are also able to be aged on <strong>the</strong> shape <strong>of</strong> outer primaries and retricies, with
adults having wider and more-rounded fea<strong>the</strong>rs. In this case it was <strong>of</strong>ten not possible to
determine in <strong>the</strong> birds culled because <strong>the</strong> fea<strong>the</strong>rs were <strong>of</strong>ten damaged during <strong>the</strong> trapping.