As Kevin hints, the lyrebirds in the musket may not be lyrebirds as we know them. Five minutes on Google (dangerous!) sourced a few links, including
http://bioacoustics.cse.unsw.edu.au/birding-aus/2010-08/msg00603.html
and
https://talkingonthethink.wordpress.com/2011/01/10/english-collective-nouns-for-birds/,
to muskets of lyrebirds in medieval texts, describing presumably peacocks, The communal noun could then have been transferred to our lyrebirds.
Steve
From: Kevin Windle [
Sent: Saturday, 22 July 2017 1:06 PM
To: David McDonald (personal) <>; CanberraBirds <>
Subject: Re: [canberrabirds] A musket of lyrebirds?
David,
Could the Yowie Man have meant 'muster'? Chambers 20th Century Dictionary includes 'a company of peacocks' as one of the senses of 'muster'. This meaning might have been transferred to lyrebirds.
I was interested to see that one of the meanings of 'musket' is 'male sparrowhawk' (also Chambers 20th Cent.)
Kevin
From: David McDonald (personal) <>
Sent: 22 July 2017 11:08:34
To: CanberraBirds
Subject: [canberrabirds] A musket of lyrebirds?
Today's Canberra Times (Panorama p. 7, Tim The Yowie Man) states under 'Fact File' that 'A group of lyrebirds is called a musket'.
I had not heard that before. Neither the Oxford nor Macquarie dictionaries show that meaning of 'musket'.
What's more, both species of lyrebirds tend to be solitary; we don't often see them in groups.
Does anyone have any insights on this usage of 'musket'?
Thanks - David
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David McDonald
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