At dusk the most extraordinary boinging and hooting noises erupt around my cabin. I think it's mostly birds. There is a dust-coloured bird that comes around several at a time, the size of a fat thrush, it is not at all sleek, they chatter away together and make a lovely sound - I am told that it is a Babbler. I look the Babbler up in Birds of Sri Lanka where Mssrs Wijeyeratne, Warakagoda and De Zylva inform me that it is a garrulous bird ... members of the flock help build each nest, which may be shared
sweet
Shuntaro Tanikawa.
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Another post about an interesting translator: Michael S. Rosenwald at the
NY Times reports that “Shuntaro Tanikawa, Popular Poet and Translator of
‘Peanuts...
7 hours ago
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I once had a Blatherskite as an officemate. Not much use building nests though.
ReplyDeleteSounds like the Sri Lankan version of the rook. I love the sound that rooks make... well, they kind of babble!
ReplyDeleteSx
~wave of envy~
ReplyDeleteClearly a board meeting about nest design takes place at regular intervals..
ReplyDeleteI have a whole horde of African Rhus trees outside my window. The cape white eyes wake me up with summer with their shrill, sweet chatter. It's like a bunch of old woman argueing affectionately.
ReplyDeleteThey sound awfully like the builders my neighbour employed for his extension, I rather miss them now the job's done.
ReplyDeleteMy rosella is a garrulous bird too. Your post reminds me I saw the biggest raven of my life today outside work; he was the size of a small cat, like something out of Day of the Triffids...scary!
ReplyDeletexl A Blatherskite is quite a different bird, one to be got rid of quickly I'd say.
ReplyDeleteScarlet - they do babble I love this birdy chatter
Kevin - but you've got loads of birds in your actual garden, millions more than mine.
Fly - I think it does
Dolce - lucky you to have this year round
Eryl - are you the first woman to miss builders?
Nursey - that does sound scary.