In Genesis, Noah sends a raven from the Ark before releasing the dove.
Genesis 8:7 says that Noah released a raven after the floodwaters began to recede. The raven flew back and forth until the waters dried from the earth. Noah then sent a dove to test whether the surface had become suitable for leaving the Ark.
The sequence is often remembered mainly through the dove and its olive leaf, so the raven can be overlooked. Genesis presents the two birds differently: the raven’s repeated flight is mentioned first, while the dove is released three times in the following verses. On its second release, the dove returns with a freshly plucked olive leaf.
The raven is a bird in the crow family, but the biblical account does not say that it found a particular mountain or shoreline. Artistic retellings sometimes combine or rearrange the birds’ roles. In the text itself, however, the raven clearly precedes the dove.