An Ornithologist's Guide to Barovia

By Frederick DuCane
While the diversity of the avifauna of the Barovian Valley leaves much to be desired, the ubiquitous raven
offers more than enough intrigue for the ornithologically inclined. Throughout the valley, one can hardly go
an hour without siting one. In many instances, one almost feels as if a raven is watching them - as if they
are studying us for some unknown purpose. On more than one occasion, your faithful ornithologist has
traversed on the dangerous roads in the altruistic pursuit of knowledge of the avian kind, only to attract
the attention of swarms of ravens who follow and watch with intent.

The raven is quite intelligent. It is the only known bird with the ability to communicate about objects or
events that are distant in space or time from the communication. They are also quite precocious. In the
wild, ravens are known to steal from each other...so wild ravens will hide their things, even building false
caches to confuse other ravens. They are also almost universally excellent problem solvers and have
even displayed the ability to solve simple puzzles.

There are many local superstitions concerning ravens as well. Ask any Barovian, and they will tell you to
never harm a raven, lest ill fortune befall you. The raven is something of an unofficial mascot here.
However, despite common belief, this ebony avian is not the namesake of the preeminent castle in the
county. It is simply a mere coincidence. Castle Ravenloft was named for Queen Ravenia van Roeyen by
her first-born son, Strahd von Zarovich, after his successful conquest of the valley. The Vistani also hold
the raven in high regard. They believe that ravens carry lost souls within them, which is why killing one is
bad luck. This belief has surely influenced standard Barovian superstition as well.

Perhaps most interesting of all is the local superstition concerning the Wereravens. More than one farmer
has claimed to have seen a horrid combination of man and bird flying through the sky or worse yet,
walking on its legs in the semblance of a man. One especially sensational man I spoke to even swore he
saw what resembled hands attached to the wings. Some believe these are ancient ravens, who have
lived for hundreds of years. They continued to grow in size, and they watched the ways of men and
learned to mimic them. Others believe them to be guardians of the land, who disguise themselves as
ravens to travel unnoticed.

The more sensible know these are simply the ramblings of con artists seeking to take advantage of the
superstitious common man for attention and perhaps a free drink. There is, of course, no evidence these
beings exist. In my extensive study of all things bird, fowl, and avian I have never seen anything of the
sort.
My own theory is that these superstitions are derived from tales of the great Roc, a bird of gargantuan
proportions. One is rumored to have taken roost around Mt. Ghakis. At the altitudes it typically soars, it
could very well look man-sized to the untrained eye. And a commoner could be forgiven for assuming it is
a giant raven, especially considering they seem to be omnipresent. My next expedition will lead me south,
where I will witness the Roc for myself and lay these superstitions to bed.