
Ravenmaster Tells of His Relationships with the Tower of London’s Resident Birds - pseudolus
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/ravenmaster-christopher-skaife-tells-of-his-relationships-with-the-tower-of-londons-resident-birds/
======
jamesgagan
The article fails to mention the ravens cannot leave because their wings are
clipped, leaving them unable to fly. So there would likely be no
"relationship" if the ravens were not intentionally crippled.
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ravens_of_the_Tower_of_London#...](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ravens_of_the_Tower_of_London#Care_and_diet)

~~~
jameslk
> Appointed in 2011, current Ravenmaster Christopher Skaife was caring for
> seven of the birds in 2018.[33] He has reduced the amount of clipping of
> wings and feathers by a third to allow the ravens to fly, instead of merely
> hopping or gliding. He has allowed one of the birds, Merlina, to fly to the
> wharf on the Thames but she always returns due to the bonding with her
> keeper.[34]

~~~
jamesgagan
If the birds are staying because they like it, or have some special "bond"
then why clip them at all? Clearly they can't fully fly as they would
naturally. It doesn't add up.

~~~
jameslk
Most birds are social animals (including Ravens) and prefer to stay with their
flock (which includes caretaker humans), so it's not really about making sure
the birds are kept prisoner. Pet birds will occasionally fly away because
they're spooked (e.g. from a bird of prey) or get lost. Once they've flown far
enough away, you're likely not to see them again. [0][1]

There are those who free flight their birds, but that requires lots of
training and requires constant monitoring of the birds, calling out to them
when they get too far. Birds rely on loud calls to find their way back to
their flock (hence why they squawk all the time--its a natural homing beacon
meant for large distances).

I'd say semi-clipped wings are probably a good compromise without constant
monitoring. These birds will outlive birds in the wild, while still having a
greater degree of freedom.

0\. [http://www.libertywings.com/2008/training/basic-flight-
train...](http://www.libertywings.com/2008/training/basic-flight-training/)

1\. [https://adventuresofroku.com/blogs/education/free-flight-
tra...](https://adventuresofroku.com/blogs/education/free-flight-training)

~~~
jamesgagan
Those are all excuses to justify keeping the ravens captive because of a
ridiculous superstition. The only ethical thing is to not keep these birds and
let ravens (and all birds for that matter) live their lives naturally in the
wild. I could chain you up "just a little" and let you have a walk now and
then and even feed you well and treat you nicely, but you would still be a
prisoner and it would be wrong for me to do that to you.

~~~
Cpoll
I think we romanticize flight, because otherwise that sounds just like owning
a dog or an indoor cat.

~~~
nerdponx
You don't cut off part of your cats' feet so they can't go too far from home.

Edit: as pointed out elsewhere, wing clipping is not permanent. That's not the
point.

------
tim333
Yr man on youtube
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H-D73wveJeg](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H-D73wveJeg)

------
chrisallick
That’s so cool!

~~~
pseudolus
If you're interested, the Ravenmaster (along with several ravens) did an
interview that's available on the Guardian books podcast at:

[https://www.theguardian.com/books/audio/2018/oct/09/what-
is-...](https://www.theguardian.com/books/audio/2018/oct/09/what-is-it-like-
being-ravenmaster-at-the-tower-of-london-books-podcast) (the Ravenmaster
segments starts at 31:05).

It's a nice weekend listen.

