In the Noah's Ark story, Noah first released a raven from the ark.
After the Flood waters began to recede, Genesis says Noah opened the ark's window and sent out a raven. The bird flew back and forth until the waters had dried from the Earth. Noah then sent out a dove to determine whether the ground had become habitable.
The raven is sometimes overlooked because the dove receives more attention in later parts of the account. The dove returned when it found nowhere to rest, then later came back with a freshly plucked olive leaf. On a subsequent release, it did not return, signaling that the land was becoming available again.
This sequence makes the raven and dove separate stages in Noah's search for dry ground. Artistic depictions often show only a dove, which can lead to the common mistake that the dove was the first bird released.