Noah first released a raven from the Ark after the floodwaters began receding.
Genesis 8:7 says Noah sent out a raven, which went back and forth until the waters dried from the earth. The narrative then describes a different sequence involving a dove, making the two birds easy to confuse.
After the raven, Noah sent a dove to see whether the waters had subsided. On its first flight, the dove found no resting place and returned. Noah waited seven days and sent it again; it came back with a freshly plucked olive leaf. A later release did not return, signaling that the land was becoming habitable.
The raven and dove serve different narrative roles. The raven’s repeated movement provides an early indication of changing conditions, while the dove’s returns supply more interpretable signs. The famous olive leaf therefore belongs to the dove episode, not the raven episode.