Ethnoornithology : Message: Re: [Ethnoornithology] Birds and Fire...

Dear all

In Europe there are legends about the black woodpecker (Dryocopus martius) and in general about the birds that have red color in the head. This one refers to the firecrest (Regulus ignicapilla) and belongs to the great French folklorist Sebillot:

"On a recueilli plusieurs traditions relatives à cette entreprise: celle de l'Orléanais y fait participer trois oiseaux; le roitelet ayant dérobé le feu du ciel descendait l'apporter sur terre, mais ses ailes brûlèrent et il fut obligé de confier son précieux fardeau au rouge-gorge; ce dernier, l'ayant posé sur sa poitrine, eut à son tour le cou brûlé; l'alouette vint recueillir le feu sacré et put atteindre la terre, où elle abandonna son trésor aux hommes".

(Paul Sébillot, Le Folk-Lore de France, Tome III (La Faune et la Flore), Ed. Imago, chap. 3 (Oiseaux sauvages)), available in http://www.rassat.com/croyances/faune_4.html

Unfortunately I do not know anything in the Basque folklore.

Excuse me my intrusion and my bad english.

Regards from Bilbao

Ander Ros

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Robert Gosford
robert_gosford

Jun 2, 2009
2:06 am

Dear all In Europe there are legends about the black woodpecker (Dryocopus martius) and in general about the birds that have red color in the head. This one...

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Jun 2, 2009
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Jul 28, 2009
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