Maggie's Farm

I live in Sydney, Australia, just turned 65.
Earlier this year I was surprised to learn that the 'crows' I've seen are really ravens. I found that Australia has both crows and ravens, but in Sydney the large black birds are almost certain to be ravens.

Australia is home to five native species of the corvid family: three species of ravens (the Australian Raven, Little Raven, and Forest Raven) and two species of crows (the Torresian Crow and Little Crow).

Australian Raven Species
Australian Raven: Found across the southern and eastern parts of the country, and the most common species in Sydney, Canberra, and Perth.
Little Raven: Found mostly in the south-east, including Melbourne and Adelaide.
Forest Raven: Found mainly in Tasmania and parts of southern Victoria.

Australian Crow Species
Torresian Crow: Found across northern Australia, Queensland, and common in Brisbane and Darwin.
Little Crow: Found in the dry, arid interior regions of mainland Australia.

How to Tell Them Apart
• Throat Hackles: Ravens have long, shaggy feathers on their throat that puff out when they call. Crows have much shorter hackles.
• Feather Down: Crows have white downy feather bases, while ravens have grey or brown feather bases (though you usually cannot see this in the wild).
• Calls: The Australian Raven makes a slow, high-pitched, three-note wail, while the Torresian Crow makes a short, quick, duck-like quacking sound.