Also known as Crested Cormorant, Crested Corvorant, Crested Shag (N England), Green Scout (Ireland) or Shagga (Sussex).

Just for the record-has anybody used it as a chat up line "fancy coming back to mine for a Phalacrocorax Aristotelis"

This is what i can find on name of shag means skegg in norwegian,which means beard,,the beard is the crest on its head,use to be called green cormorant,,and tufted skart hope that helps
Jimmy

I knew we would get down this and there is great scope to go off on a mega tangent with this one, however

I believe a shag was a shag long before the Slang term for sexual intercourse was used, but as with all names many a myth surrounds its origin.

Perhaps the fact that it has a shaggy crest in breeding plumage may be a reason.

According to Birds Britannica The Shetland youth information service has renamed it Scarfie

Whichever way you look at it the morning conversation with Warfy Riggers Skiddo,
Dave and Mel did take a slightly smutty tone, and well done on getting your Scarfie warfy, ( sorry could not help it. )

Keep birding

Gary Marland wrote:

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Mark Rigby wrote:

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(brace is 2 game birds except Pheasant!).

So what are four game birds called then. A pair of braces.

I'll get my coat.

Gary

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I like that one... and of course GOT to be more PC than the predictable 'tits' gags that people throw at you when they know you're into Birding eh?

Neil.

Mark Rigby wrote:

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I have plenty of books that I had forgotten about. To avoid incuring the wrath of Mrs Riggers, when I buy a new book, I stash it out of the way behind other books. Then, when tidying up I come across said book and say "Oh, I forgot I that one-I think I will have a read".

Its only the same as all those dresses and shoes that fall out of Mrs.Riggers wardrobe which she says she has had for years!

What is good for the Goose, is good for the Gander as they say!

Where's that book? lets look up Gander!

---

I clearly remeber a number of books being sneeked into your house after a birding trip, especially trips to Norfolk when we would decend on Titchwell and spend a bit of time in the shop!

I willl take that remark as a complement Mr Riggers, nice fine hope you had a good read but how can you have books and not know you have them.

Jackson Book worth about £10 in good nick with dust jacket.
Lodge about £5.

now find that large format book for Tim in your pile.

keep reading check out oil names for kestrel will make you smile.

Keep birding.

Spent this afternoon indoors fixing a new bookcase to the wall of my study.(actually the box room-but study sounds good).After attaching said bookcase to the wall, I was filling it with books when I came across an old book I bought some years ago called "British Names of Birds" by Christine E Jackson.

I have spent the last 5 hrs flicking through it picking up gems such as a Robin is a falconers name for a male Hobby, a stagg is a one year old swan and that there is no such thing a "a brace of Pheasant"(brace is 2 game birds except Pheasant!).

There is a sedge of Bittern's, a fling of Dunlin, a plump of wildfowl, a knob of Pochard, a bouquet of Pheasants(not brace-dont forget) and a tok of Capercaillie's

Hence, the time is 1135hrs and I am still tidying up!!!!!

I am beginning to sound like Mr. Heaton

-- Edited by Mark Rigby at 23:58, 2008-08-10

Howdy folks - are we discussing 'local nicknames' for birds here also?

Just recalling - "Sheppies" - escapes me now - is that a local term for Starlings?

And I'm sure my dad's referred to 'Chewits' before now - not the filling-pulling sweets, but Lapwing I think.

:)

Neil.

Mike, just spent 5 mins laughing at your post( I'm a City fan, don't get much to smile about ).
Cheers Ian
ps If a Balrog was about I bet Warfy would shorten it and Ian(GOD)Mck would see at least 10 on Astley Moss before anyone else
Cheers again Ian

-- Edited by Ian Campbell at 18:48, 2008-07-01

Just seen this extract from http://leicesterllama.blogspot.com/ about Sprosser.

Calling a Thrush Nightingale a 'Sprosser' is one that I just don't get.

Everyone knows that it's simply the German name for the species, but when and more importantly why did it enter some British birders' vocabularies? We don't go around saying we've had good views of a Nachtigall, or twitched an Erddrossel or a Gartenbaumläufer for f***'s sake, so why pick on this one? Yes, it's a bit quicker than saying 'Thrush Nightingale', but then 'Streifenschwirl' is shorter than 'Pallas's Grasshopper Warbler' and we don't use that, do we? Although perhaps that's because it looks a bit difficult to pronounce, whereas even the dullest, most linguistically challenged twitcher can cope with Sprosser.

Explains everything ???

OYKS
OK Warfy
Just read the post about Rumworth Lodge?
It sounds like LORD of the RINGS is going on down there!
What with Oyks (what do they look like?). There will be Balrogs seen next. BIRDS HAVE PROPER NAMES
Cheers Ian
ps
We now need suggestions for GM birders about who plays GOLLUM etc
Only JokingCheers Ian

Hi All,
Fantastic thread this one, just read it today on my lunch. Having got the 'birds names and folklore' book referred to earlier down the thread several years back I went a stage further about 18 months ago and went on a search for a little known but highly prized specialist book: A Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names by James A. Jobling (Oxford Uni Press, 1991). I could not find a copy of this through any book stores online, bird book specailists (including ones at bird fairs) and only occassionally have I found it on Amazon, but it is always for between £150 and £200, so always a non-starter there and once bid up to £60 on ebay for it, but was beaten at the last second
Anyway, I finally traced down a copy in the John Rylands University Library, Oxford Road, as I have lifetime membership to this library and all its books and journals (absolutely brilliant resource for all manner of new and old publications). Only issue is that the book is referrence only so can't take it home, but photocopied some pages for bedtime reading!? Well, to get to my point, this book is the real brains behind the scientific names of all species and makes sense of so many strange titles that you always wondered what they meant, if you like Latin that is. The synopsis of the book is as follows: This dictionary gives the derivation and meaning of all valid scientific bird names. Each part of the name is defined separately so that Passer domesticus, for example, will not be found as such, but both Passer and domesticus are explained in their respective alphabetical places. The usefulness of the dictionary will thus not be affected by future taxonomic revisions of generic or species names. About 8500 names are defined, including a selection of historical synonyms. Many unusual details emerge from the author's meticulous work in tracking down obscure meanings. A short but informative introduction explains the history and purposes of scientific nomenclature and the basic features of Latin in this context. It also discusses the ways in which birds have been named for their appearance, for a person or place, or some aspect of their habitat, behaviour, food, or voice, or with reference to their native-language name. This book should prove a valuable reference source for everyone whose work or interests bring them into contact with birds. Well, when it's raining like this you need something to read heh!?

When this thread started i had no idea what a "PG Tips" was. A bit of research found the answer.
Then, my son bought me "Gripping Yarns" by Bill Oddie for fathers day. One of the stories is about the legendary "white tips". which aren't that obvious, aparently.

This months Birdwatching magazine also has a reference to "PG Tips".

Coincidence or what

Dean

Ian Woosey wrote:

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GIVE BIRDS THEIR PROPER NAMES !

Icky ? Melody ?? Sprosser ????????........what`s all that about ?

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Ian,

There is a time and a place. Birds should be called by their proper names-with capital letters.

But when out in the field and you are lucky enough to find an Icterine Warbler for example, by the time you have got everybody's attention, by way of "Excuse me everybody but I have managed to find and correctly identify an Icterine Warbler in yonder bush"- it will have buggered off, never to be seen again!!!

However, exclaiming "Icky at 1 o'clock", will result in a more rapid resonse by the observers and may result in more people "getting on " it

Then again, if you say "Excuse me everybody but I have managed to find and correctly identify an Icterine Warbler in yonder bush"- it may give the Willow Warbler that you have mis identified ,enough time to disapear into dense undergrowth and cover up your mistake

And Now For Something Completely Different..........ie - the origins of this thread !

GIVE BIRDS THEIR PROPER NAMES !

Icky ? Melody ?? Sprosser ????????........what`s all that about ?

It should be made socially unacceptable

After 12 years of birding with him, I have to agree with you, Paul, that Riggers is definately no angel !

Right we have to stop this now, my sides will not take it any more, they have split twice already.

The very thought of Warfy wrapped in swaddling clothes and been the saviour of mankind, has me very worried!!!!!

We have the 3 wise men, Judith Smith as mary is ......perfect.
so who going to be joseph i think the honors to go Pete Berry...

Riggers is a shepherd and the rest are angels, sorry Mr Wilson but Rob and Sonia
get to be Brian and Brain.

so there we go all sorted great fun have not laughed so much in ages, well done to all.

Keep Birding.

What about Mr Mc kerchar, he is to busy, what birding I hear you ask.....no, he is
Widow Twankey in the Gm Birders pantomime

Paul Heaton wrote:

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Its a pleasure gentlemen.

Now who would you cast in the other roles

keep birding

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warfy could be the baby jesus.

I suppose I should say that I too am honoured - but who gets the myrrh (whatever that is - please don't answer and start another wierd thread!)?

Steve

I am truely honoured also
Thank you Paul
Cheers Ian
......................
Even though I can't spell truly

-- Edited by Ian Campbell at 18:47, 2008-06-19

Steve Suttill wrote:

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I think I should have lived in the days when they thought Barnacle Geese did hatch from barnacles and Swallows hibernated under water in reedbeds!

Where do they come from thenYou learn something new every day

Oh how I love it when a tangent happens on a thread, where are we going this this one, Latin Greek Grammer etc.

I am sure if Mr Mckerchar had a dentention section on here I would be in it doing lines,

I must learn my latin I must learn my latin,

Sadly been born in Gorton and raised in Wythenshawe Anglo-saxon was our second language, God forbid you ever admitted to been a birdwatcher, you would be hung drawn and laughed at, how i remember school days with fun.

In fact if we had a GM nativity play I am sure Steve Suttill, craig higson and Ian Campbell
would be perfect for the three wise men.

keep it up gentlemen Its nice to be educated.

Keep birding.

Craig Higson wrote:

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All I know is it makes my head hurt

If you think that's bad, you wouldn't have liked one of the sets of questions from the King William School Christmas Quiz a few years ago. There were ten phrases in English such as ' grass widow from Ithaca' which you had to convert into Latin, Greek or a Classical illusion, which gave you all or part of the scientific name of a British bird. The question was headed simply 'retranslate' and the answers were the birds' English names. This was for secondary school pupils, but, when I took the copy with me on our Norfolk trip it had several groups of adult birders scratchung their heads. I liked yellow-footed chicken best

Well done Craig, you just beat me to an almost identical post, sorry Stephanos but Family comes before Genus .
Cheers Ian
ps who cares anyway?, perhaps Trogledytester, the Wren does