In the Genesis Flood narrative, a raven was the first bird sent out after the Ark and it did not find a stated resting place.
Genesis 8:7 says Noah sent out a raven after the waters began to recede. The raven went back and forth until the waters dried from the earth. Noah later sent a dove, which returned because it found nowhere to rest.
The dove was sent again and returned with a freshly plucked olive leaf, providing a clearer sign that vegetation had reappeared. A final release of the dove produced no return, indicating that the land was becoming habitable.
Popular images often focus only on the dove and olive branch, so the raven’s earlier role is easily overlooked. The sequence in Genesis begins with the raven, not the dove.