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How many people who use the names Happy Families, Lousy Jacks and
12 Apostles, realise that babblers, apostlebirds and choughs are different
things? Just as all raptors are big "chicken hawks" and little
"chicken hawks". And if they do, do they realise that not all babblers
are the one species.
I am not knocking the names, I suppose there is nothing more
intrinsically dopey about the name Happy Families,
compared to Willie Wagtail, 12 Apostles, 28 parrot or Apostlebird, they are just labels. Although it stretches the grammar when
you report one Happy
Families!
Philip
-----Original Message-----
From:
Brian Fleming <>
To:
<>
Date:
Monday, 25 October 2004 19:53
Subject: [BIRDING-AUS] Bush bird
names e.g. Happy Families
Back
in the '70s we camped at Mootwingie NP (NSW). We were very amused
by the
Apostle-Birds, which walked into camps and caravans and were
delighted
with offerings of muesli and any other edible they could get
their beaks
on. Then we went down to broken Hill, where we found the
camping-ground
very crowded a/c the local Show and the replay of the
local Aus. Rules
Football Final. Our neighbours were interested to hear
of our adventures
but puzzled by the name Apostle-bird. We described
them. "Oh, you
mean Lousy Jacks!" but another camper called them
"Happy
Families" and called one of the Babbler species
"Twelve Apostles."
It does help to have been brought
up on the old hardback of "What Bird
is That?" which gives
almost all the old bush names. These days I keep
meeting people who have
no idea what I mean when I say "Cranky Fan".
Anthea
Fleming
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