In Genesis, the first bird Noah sent out after the Flood was a raven.
Genesis 8:6–7 says that after forty days Noah opened the ark’s window and sent out a raven. The raven flew back and forth until the waters had dried from the earth. Noah then sent a dove to see whether the water had receded from the ground.
The raven is often overshadowed by the dove because the dove’s later returns provide the story’s best-known signs. On its second flight, the dove returned with a freshly plucked olive leaf, and on its third flight it did not return. These episodes are distinct from the raven’s earlier mission.
The passage does not say that the raven brought back a branch or leaf. That image belongs to the dove. The raven’s behavior is described first, making it the answer to the question about the initial bird sent from the ark.