Castle Aching

[Buhar]

3 hours ago, Schooner said:

 

Must be something in the air...

Rabbit hole warning required.

Alan 

[Compound2632]

If it's vicious birds you're wanting, there's the male swan on our lake. This is the first year we have had a breeding pair, with six cygnets. We also have a large population of Canada geese, who practice gang-brooding - forming a creche of several families of goslings with a posse of attendant adults. The male swan has taken to attacking the gang-brood when they are on the water. I'm not sure we've seen an actual killing - the goslings dive under water at the last moment to escape the swan and it's not always possible to see where they re-surface. The adult geese are helpless against the swan individually and haven't found a strategy to mob him. It's as if the Bismark had intercepted an Atlantic convoy.

[Donw]

I believe they used to be known as Dawes  the JackDaw being the male. We have loads here the roost in the nearby trees and come down for any food put out for smaller birds. The tamest one wanders around the garden quite unbothered by Marion gardening. However our last dog died from Liver tumour and we now have a small one (just under 4Kg) who believe his duties include chasing off Jackdawes and Pigeons.

We also get rooks the cleverest has worked out how to use a squirrel feeder lifting the lid with his head.  Incidently the squirrel feeder if for the delightful red ones.

 

Don

[Hroth]

Dickens refers to "Christmas Dawes" in A Christmas Carol as if it were proverbial at the time.

 

[St Enodoc]

9 hours ago, Caley Jim said:

In Scotland they are 'greybacks', which was the name CR enginemen gave to the 60 class.  In other words they were lousy engines!

 

Jim

Nobody's mentioned sawyers yet, which is how they were known in one of the areas where I lived in the UK - Sussex, perhaps?

[St Enodoc]

6 hours ago, Edwardian said:

It's times like this I realise how well you do given English is your second language

Try this:

 

https://www.scottishpoetrylibrary.org.uk/poem/the-twa-corbies/

[Buhar]

16 hours ago, Caley Jim said:

In Scotland they are 'greybacks', which was the name CR enginemen gave to the 60 class.  In other words they were lousy engines!

 

Jim

In Ayrshire they were slaters, though. The bug, not the sluggish 4-6-0s.

[ChrisN]

Magpies, nasty vicious animals.  They used to attack our tom cat, He was a big cat and able to defend himself, so it was always a draw, but I think they just enjoyed it.  He did not.

 

However, the other day when I was out for a walk with my wife in the local park, there were two magpies on the path and a rat ran out of the bushes to attack them.  They immediately turned and chased it back, then went after it.  'Good for them', I thought, 'more power to your elbow'.  ( I know they do not actually have elbows, but you know what I mean.)

[jcredfer]

47 minutes ago, ChrisN said:

Magpies, nasty vicious animals.  They used to attack our tom cat, He was a big cat and able to defend himself, so it was always a draw, but I think they just enjoyed it.  He did not.

 

However, the other day when I was out for a walk with my wife in the local park, there were two magpies on the path and a rat ran out of the bushes to attack them.  They immediately turned and chased it back, then went after it.  'Good for them', I thought, 'more power to your elbow'.  ( I know they do not actually have elbows, but you know what I mean.)

 

Birds are remarkably similar to us, in that they articulate and shape change their wings - or perhaps, more accurately, we are similar to them???

 

https://www.dkfindout.com/uk/animals-and-nature/birds/inside-wing/ 

 

[16Brunel]

1 hour ago, Buhar said:

17 hours ago, Caley Jim said:

 

In Ayrshire they were slaters, though.

 

In Australia too.

 

1 hour ago, ChrisN said:

Magpies, nasty vicious animals

 

If you want vicious birds, come to Australia!  In addition to the sharks, snakes and spiders, our magpies (butcherbirds, not corvids) are highly intelligent, can each recognise many individual humans, and have a wonderful habit of swooping attacks with a deadly beak during nesting season.  A couple of years ago someone died when they fell off their bike and hit their head on hard ground while under magpie attack.

 

On 26/05/2023 at 15:13, St Enodoc said:

Yes, it sounds like what happens when you don't wear any jocks under your daks.

 

Careful John - you are starting to sound like a genuine Bruce! 😂

[Hroth]

8 hours ago, St Enodoc said:

Try this:

 

https://www.scottishpoetrylibrary.org.uk/poem/the-twa-corbies/

 

Rather than trying to decipher Scots...

 

 

Of course, the "Three Ravens"  predates the "Twa Corbies"...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Three_Ravens

 

[Caley Jim]

5 hours ago, Hroth said:

Of course, the "Three Ravens"  predates the "Twa Corbies"...

Don't forget the Three Craws.

 

 

Jim

[St Enodoc]

7 hours ago, Caley Jim said:

Don't forget the Three Craws.

 

 

Jim

Or The Wee Kirkcudbright Centipede - but that's another story.

[Caley Jim]

9 hours ago, St Enodoc said:

Or The Wee Kirkcudbright Centipede - but that's another story.

I wonder how many people pronounced that 'Kirk-cud-bright' instead of 'Kirk-oo-bry'? 🙄

 

Jim

[Schooner]

What do we think this is, Italian?!

 

A hamlet near here (the kind of place that's on old signposts but not digital maps) has a name of five letters, at least four viable pronunciations (and two Air B'n'Bs). Each of these is a sure-fire giveaway that the speaker is from for'n climes*.

 

*anywhere beyond the adjacent valley.

 

To locals it is solely referred to as "On the way to..."

 

[monkeysarefun]

On 27/05/2023 at 19:59, 16Brunel said:

If you want vicious birds, come to Australia!  In addition to the sharks, snakes and spiders, our magpies (butcherbirds, not corvids) are highly intelligent, can each recognise many individual humans, and have a wonderful habit of swooping attacks with a deadly beak during nesting season.  A couple of years ago someone died when they fell off their bike and hit their head on hard ground while under magpie attack.

 

 

 

The trick is to bribe them with yummy magpie treats so they'll go the neighbours instead, however this then makes them pretty in-your-face every time they see you outside.

 

 

 

 

WE had one at work for about 3 years  that would only attack people wearing the RAAF blue dress  uniform. Everyone else was left alone unmolested, even if I wore a blue polo-shirt close to the RAAF blue I was fine - I could walk along unscathed while the poor RAAF bu99er in front of me was getting dive-bombed from  HQ building  to occifers mess.  It had a vantage point on one of the antenna masts and would cover the whole base, which had a warning sign posted at the front gate "Warning Magpie conducting ground attack missions on this base".  Like all wildlife here they are protected.

Edited May 29, 2023 by monkeysarefun

[Edwardian]

4 hours ago, monkeysarefun said:

WE had one at work for about 3 years  that would only attack people wearing the RAAF blue dress  uniform. ...  It had a vantage point on one of the antenna masts and would cover the whole base, which had a warning sign posted at the front gate "Warning Magpie conducting ground attack missions on this base".  Like all wildlife here they are protected.

 

 

The reach of the PLA's Sleeping Panda Animal Re-education Division has indeed grown long!

[drduncan]

20 hours ago, Schooner said:

What do we think this is, Italian?!

 

A hamlet near here (the kind of place that's on old signposts but not digital maps) has a name of five letters, at least four viable pronunciations (and two Air B'n'Bs). Each of these is a sure-fire giveaway that the speaker is from for'n climes*.

 

*anywhere beyond the adjacent valley.

 

To locals it is solely referred to as "On the way to..."

 

I’m always intrigued by the sign on the A3 for the village of Hurtmore. Never visited- I’m sure it couldn’t possibly live up to its name.

Duncan.

[monkeysarefun]

4 hours ago, drduncan said:

I’m always intrigued by the sign on the A3 for the village of Hurtmore. Never visited- I’m sure it couldn’t possibly live up to its name.

Duncan.

When in Victoria I always keep well clear of Mount Bu99ery.

[Edwardian]

From the BBC archives (I had to don black tie just to post this):

 

 

 

[Donw]

How the memory plays tricks I thought it was 1962 when I spoke to the Rev at Central hall but he said the first showing was 1963.

 

Don

[Hroth]

17 hours ago, monkeysarefun said:

When in Victoria I always keep well clear of Mount Bu99ery.

 

You don't HAVE to take it as a literal instruction...

 

[Schooner]

...but it helps?

 

Not sure I've seen that mug design, although I can imagine it selling well.

[Edwardian]

It does look perfectly charming

 

 

[Schooner]

18 hours ago, Edwardian said:

From the BBC archives

Wonderful, thanks for sharing.

 

I found the most interesting snippet was the use of 'He' for real (as opposed to Sudrian) locomotives.