The Ravenmaster

Have you heard of the Ravenmaster? Or visited the Tower of London?

I hadn't either until recently I saw that a book has been published about/by this man, Christopher Skaife (and his team) who look after the ravens living at the Tower. This job has extreme importance because, it is said, that if the ravens should ever leave, the Tower will crumble and the Kingdom (Queendom?) will fall into a state of chaos.

William the Conqueror

The Tower of London was constructed in the 1070's by William the Conqueror. who brought masons from Normandy and imported stone from Caen in France. 

Over the years the tower site has been expanded with the addition of walls and an extended moat.

Throughout the years, the Tower has been the safe repository for the nation's wealth and the royal family's crown jewels, guarded by the Yeoman Warders (Beefeaters). 

 

The Yeoman Warder who is designated to keep the ravens healthy and happy is called the Ravenmaster. For now, he is Christoper Skaife. 

Skaife has taken on this posting with real enthusiasm and has established a very close relationship with the ravens, especially Merlina and he regularly tweets (no pun intended!) about raven adventures. 

Merlina

Of course I wondered why the ravens don't just leave, but apparently, their wings are clipped so they can't fly very far. Unfortunately, the raven propensity for roosting in the heights meant that there were occasional unfortunate fatal plummets to the ground and Skaife decided that the wings should be clipped minimally so that the birds can at least glide toward earth, thus saving lives. Also, the Yeoman Warders ensure that the birds are well-nourished and provided with treats and enticements to stay on site. 

Speaking of staying on site, in one podcast about the Ravenmaster, he mentioned that all the Yeoman Warders including himself, and their families are housed on-site at the Tower. There is a whole range of amenities available for them there - shops, post office, doctor, restaurant etc. Not sure about school. 

A little information about ravens in the UK: they are a member of the crow family and are massive - the largest "crow". Carrion crows, much smaller, are also much more numerous than ravens. There are also jackdaws and rooks but I never intended to turn this post into a bird identifier.

(By the way, we had ravens nesting at the cottage this spring and we can attest to their impressive size)

As with every instance where wildlife is kept in captivity, there is controversy: should these ravens be kept like this for the sake of a myth that is questionable and for tourists to enjoy and for books to be published? Do these birds have a good life? Safe? With food provided? Or should they be free to fly where they like and fend for themselves? 

What do you think?