tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3004618104437304826.post2636077135874099745..comments2023-08-11T15:36:35.090+01:00Comments on Caroline Gill: Poetry and Other Writing: Beautiful Birds (13): Magpies - two for joy, twenty for...?Caroline Gillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05203454486693014969noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3004618104437304826.post-10455307065257345552010-12-23T12:27:45.072+00:002010-12-23T12:27:45.072+00:00I've always been fascinated by collective noun...I've always been fascinated by collective nouns too! You reminded of how interesting it was to discover( nearly 40 years ago) that it was a convocation of eagles or a parliament of owls!! It's usually a murder of crows that I see around here. Perhaps when I go out of the region I might get to see a sight like the one in your photos! So many of them!<br /><br />BTW, the poem is an all time favourite of mine.Nature Rambleshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01873392512787718466noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3004618104437304826.post-43631644547623300852009-08-18T20:15:18.069+01:002009-08-18T20:15:18.069+01:00hello caroline, thanks for this posting. the links...hello caroline, thanks for this posting. the links were fascinating as i have heard bits of that rhyme but not seen the whole piece. isn't there a poem somewhat similar for crows? stevenstevenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14132104804524716898noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3004618104437304826.post-57725482384966459802009-08-17T23:53:55.488+01:002009-08-17T23:53:55.488+01:00I can't get over how many are there. They'...I can't get over how many are there. They're cute though. Your poem Waves was really good. Have a great night~poefusionhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15157059633840032305noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3004618104437304826.post-83827910760962847102009-08-17T22:40:10.722+01:002009-08-17T22:40:10.722+01:00It's interesting that, although the name is re...It's interesting that, although the name is related to the noise it makes, it isn't onomatopoeic, like the names of almost all the other British crows. Raven (from 'hrafn', crow, rook, chough, jack(daw) are all supposed to be imitative of the birds' calls.<br /><br />You often get larger than usual gatherings of corvids at this time of year, because extended family groupings tend to stay together, and because unattached young birds also group together. Plus, they're in moult about now (you see a lot of magpies with shorter than usual tails), so with their mobility potentially affected there's all the more reason to go for safety in numbers.<br /><br />I love corvids, personally. They get a bad name, but all the scientific evidence shows that prey species thrive where they do - the loss of young songbirds is effectively factored into nature's calculations.Matt Merritthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12371656447328595720noreply@blogger.com