One of the Tower of London crows, the conspiracy of birds whose fate is allegedly intertwined with that of Britain, is missing and feared dead, the royal palace said on Thursday.
“We have really unfortunate news to share,” the Tower announced on its website, referring to the missing corvid as ‘Queen of the Tower Raven’. “Our beloved raven Merlina has not been seen at the tower for several weeks now, and her continued absence indicates to us that she is sadly deceased.”
Ravens are native to the area and can grow longer than two feet tall with a wingspan of up to 51 centimeters. According to folklore, the kingdom and the land will collapse if there are less than six crows left to protect the tower.
But Yeoman Warder’s raven master, Chris Skaife, who looks after the birds, assured the British, who were worried about the coronavirus pandemic and the Brexit divorce, that the country was safe – for now.
“It is clear that I, as the raven master, am looking after the kingdom,” he told BBC Radio.
“But we do have seven crows here at the Tower of London, six by royal decree and of course I have another extra, so we’re OK at the moment.”
The decision, which was allegedly issued in the 17th century, states that there should be six on the site at a time. On the tower’s website, it is noted that the raven master adorns the large black birds’ flight feathers to encourage them to stay at the tower.
Skaife said in an interview with AFP in October last year that he usually considers two as ‘spare parts’, ‘just in case’, and that Merlina was his favorite.
Described by the tower as the ‘undisputed ruler of the sleeping place’, Merlina was last seen a few weeks ago in the historic palace on the River Thames.
Photo by TOLGA AKMEN / AFP via Getty Images
“Just before Christmas, before we go to the lock, we put the crows in bed, and she does not come back,” Skaife said.
He described Merlina as a ‘free-spirited raven known to have left the tower sites on many occasions’.
However, he added: “She normally comes back to us, but this time she did not, so I fear she is no longer with us.”
Merlina has become an internet favorite from Skaife’s regular posts and videos of her on his Instagram and Twitter accounts, which has more than 120,000 followers.
The seven remaining crows in captivity in the tower are Poppy, Erin, Jubilee, Rocky, Harris, Gripp and George. The tower’s website states that crows are intelligent birds with different personalities that can mimic sounds, play games and solve problems.
Skaife, a former staff sergeant and drummer in the Royal Regiment of the Princess of Wales, faced an unprecedented challenge to entertain the tower’s celebrated bird dwellers during the coronavirus lock-up last year.
The birds suddenly found themselves with no one to play with – or to rob them of food. He feared the birds would fly away to try to find food elsewhere.
Photo by TOLGA AKMEN / AFP via Getty Images