Merlina was, of course, the cleverest of the lot, with an avid following on social media. They are also fantastically clever, with a cognitive ability thought to rival that of chimps and donkeys.Īll of which means they are curious, naughty, excellent mimics (of crows, blackbirds and even humans - squawking 'good morning' to visitors) and get bored easily.ĭuring last year's lockdown and missing all their usual attention, some started dive-bombing members of staff, which was intimidating given they grow up to 2 ft high, with a wingspan of up to 4 ft, and are equipped with a vicious beak and powerful talons. 'Ravens have strong personalities and strong emotions - anger, happiness and, in Jubilee's case, deep sadness,' says Chris.

Merlina, the 14-year-old 'free-spirited' raven who arrived at the Tower as a chick in 2007, has not been seen at her home at the 11th Century castle for several weeks and is feared deadīut not so for one young buck called Jubilee, aged nine, who had fallen for Merlina shortly before her disappearance, bonded firmly and now looks down in the dumps. Indeed, for six of them, it's just business as usual - perching, roosting, flitting from the Tower battlements to their smart, purpose-built house.Īnd, of course, gobbling through their daily ration of 6oz of fresh meat, hard-boiled eggs, biscuits soaked in blood, the occasional rabbit and, in non-Covid times, however many sausage rolls, sandwiches and crisps they can steal from visitors. While Chris admits to shedding 'quite a few tears', back at the Tower, all but one of Merlina's seven glossy black pals appear unperturbed. And, of course, I still have a spare one, so we're OK, at the moment,' he says, adding: 'And we also have an active breeding programme.

'We do have seven ravens here at the Tower of London, six by royal decree. But we don't need this adding to 2021.'Ĭhris, meanwhile - who became a Yeoman Warder in 2006 and has held the highly coveted post of Ravenmaster since 2011 - is far more worried about his beloved Merlina than the threat to the kingdom. and it starts with ravens leaving the Tower of London.'Ī third wrote: 'Now, I'm not superstitious in the slightest. Wild, free-spirited and cheeky - forever stealing tourists' sandwiches and Pringles - Merlina (seen with Mr Skaife) was also unusually loving for a ravenĪnother said: 'After 2020 what can go worse in 2021.

Christopher skaife