Nevermore

The Nevermore  is a species of Grimm and the only avian species seen thus far. It is first encountered by Team RWBY during the Beacon Academy Initiation test and is featured in Players and Pieces.

However, it appears that a smaller, possibly juvenile, member of the species is the 'Birdie' that Ruby Rose strikes during her descent into the forest in the episode The Emerald Forest. It is also seen briefly in the Volume 1 Opening, swooping towards the viewer during the group shot of the creatures of Grimm.

Appearance
The Nevermore is an avian that has features resembling those of several other bird species. Two notable examples of this are its resemblances to condors and ravens. Like other creatures of Grimm, it has a mask-like, white bony structure overlaying the upper front of its head. It also has four glowing red eyes, two on each side of its head. The headpiece also includes a dorsal spine or fin, reminiscent of that on the heads of condors and some prehistoric Pterosaurs.

Interestingly, the Nevermore is seen to have two clawed "fingers" extending forwards from the outermost wing joint. This is a feature not seen on any contemporary birds on Earth. It is most closely matched by pseudo-fingers seen on the outer wing joints of ancient proto-birds like Archaeopteryx. The Nevermore is generally reminiscent of the Archaeopteryx in many ways, although it is many times larger, even in its smallest seen form.

The First Step, Pt.2
While landing in the Emerald Forest, Ruby accidentally kills a small Nevermore on her way down.

Players and Pieces
As part of one of Ruby's plans, she and Weiss Schnee ride on the back of a giant Nevermore in the hopes of reaching the abandoned temple. When Weiss becomes angered at Ruby's idea, Ruby suggests that they jump off the large bird and then proceeds to do so, leaving the very hesitant Weiss behind.

The Nevermore begins to circle around and eventually Weiss loses her grip, sending her plummeting towards the ground before being "rescued" by Jaune. The Nevermore continues to circle around the group of students before pinning Ruby to the ground, using its feathers as flying daggers. However, Ruby escapes with some help from Weiss. As the students each grab a relic, they run back to the cliffs with the Nevermore following closely behind.

While attacking the students, Blake Belladonna lands on its back and hits it with multiple strikes, which don't seem to even hurt the bird. After Blake returns to the group, Yang Xiao Long suggests hitting it with everything they have. Unfortunately, this fails as well, and Yang attacks it on her own. The Nevermore begins to focus on attacking Ruby, Weiss, Yang, and Blake until Ruby comes up with a plan to beat it. Yang forces it on the ground before Weiss freezes its tail feathers to the stone. Blake then uses her Gambol Shroud's ribbon as a large slingshot, and Weiss uses Myrtenaster's Dust capabilities to launch Ruby. Ruby uses the blade of Crescent Rose to hook the Nevermore's neck and then drag it up the cliff with the aid of Weiss, who uses her Dust abilities to launch Ruby upward. Upon reaching the top of the cliff, Ruby manages to decapitate the bird, instantly killing it.

Welcome to Beacon
The Nevermore is mentioned briefly in the Remnant game Team RWBY is playing. However, it's called the "Giant Nevermore". It's unknown if this is a simple title for the card, expressing its size, or if it's a different type entirely. Its design seems to differ from the usual Nevermore however, with a much more prominent feather frill and differing wing design.

Abilities & Powers
The Nevermore seems to have the ability of easily swooping down for an attack where it gains momentum in going straight back up. It's shown to have a tremendous amount of strength as seen when it was able to destroy a large stone structure with just one hit, as well as ramming itself into a stone bridge with little consequence.

Additionally, it is shown to be highly durable as it is hit several times by Team RWBY's attacks, yet appears to be unaffected and continues flying. Even when Yang shoots five blasts directly into its mouth with Ember Celica, it is only disoriented for a few seconds. Blake also hit it several times when on its back with no visible damage being dealt to the bird. This incredibly large Nevermore is only defeated after Ruby cuts through its neck with Crescent Rose whilst dragging it up a hundred-foot cliff-face with the help of her team.

The Nevermore is the first creature of Grimm shown to have a ranged attack. During Players and Pieces, it is shown throwing feathers from its wing, which act like a volley of arrows with an effective range in the hundreds of yards. The only other attack used is a battering ram-like attack, flying and shattering parts of monuments using its bony head-piece.

Trivia

 * The name "Nevermore" is a reference to Edgar Allen Poe's poem, "The Raven".
 * A Nevermore appears in the Opening, flying out over other creatures of the Grimm.
 * There have been 3 different sizes of Nevermore seen so far, a very small one which Ruby crashes into, one slightly larger than an Ursa shown in the intro and the very large one which Team RWBY fights.
 * It is the only known avian species thus far and the fifth species of Grimm introduced in the series.
 * It is also one of the largest Grimm specimens.
 * It is also the first to display an attack ability other than just charging or clawing.
 * Due to the fact that the Nevermore uses its feathers to attack, it is quite possible that it is also based on the Stymphalian Birds, which are metallic avian creatures that were pets for the war god Ares that could launch their razor-sharp feathers at targets. They were killed by Heracles as part of his twelve labors.