Mallards Pike, Forest of Dean

Mallards Pike in the Forest of Dean is a small lake with nearby parking, a cafe and a tree climbing facility. The name seems to reference the ducks most commonly seen on the water and a type of fish that lurks beneath the surface. But apparently this isn't so. Mallard in this instance is a corruption of the surname Maller, the person who owned not only land in the area in the 1950s but specifically, a turnpike road and toll house. Maller's turnpike, in time, became Mallards Pike.

 photo © T. Boughen     Camera: iPhone

Sea Crow

The name of the bird we call the cormorant (Phalocrocorax carbo) is said to derive from C12 French then Latin (Corvus marinus) for sea crow. Looking at this big black bird one can imagine how that might have come about. Today the cormorant isn't a bird associated only with the sea, though many can be seen there; it is also equally at home on some inland rivers and lakes. The bird in the photograph was perched on a riverside alder tree at Ross on Wye. The white feathers on the neck and the white patch on its flanks indicate that it is an adult in breeding plumage.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Nikon P900

Teasels

The dried heads of teasels (Dipsacus) have always fascinated me ever since I learned the origin of their name. It derives from the Old English "taesel" meaning to "tease". That isn't tease in the sense of "to poke fun". Here the derivation is from "to tease" meaning "to separate or pull apart". The dried, autumnal heads with their spikes and hooks were used in the textile industry to raise the nap on woollen cloth to make it feel softer and warmer.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Lumix FZ1000 2

Jackdaw

The first syllable of the name of the jackdaw (Corvus monedula) is onomatopoeic, being akin to the bird's call that is frequently transcribed as "tchack". The second syllable, "daw" is the old (at least fifteenth century) name for black, crow family members, especially the jackdaw, and also given on the basis of their "cawing" call. English church towers and spires, offering the cliff-like nesting sites favoured by jackdaws, are locations where the bird is often found. The jackdaw in the photograph was at the very top of a churchyard yew tree a few yards from the church tower.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Nikon P900

Why bluetooth?

Sitting at my computer the other day the question, "Why bluetooth?" popped into my mind. A quick rummage on the internet provided the following answer. In 1996 Intel, Eriksson and Nokia were deciding a name for a new short range wireless link to connect PCs with cellular devices. The Scandinavian involvement in the discussion resulted in the proposal of bluetooth, a name borrowed from King Harald "Bluetooth" Gormsson. His nickname derived from a dead tooth that was blue/grey in colour. Moreover, the king was responsible for uniting or linking Denmark and Norway in the year 958. The symbol for bluetooth was arrived at by combining the runic letters H and B. Interesting! The macro photograph shows the bluetooth symbol on a speaker on my desk.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Olympus OMD E-M10

Gadwall drake

The gadwall (Mareca streptera) is a subtly coloured, reasonably common duck. It can be easily picked out among other surface feeding ducks of similar size by the grey/brown/black/white combination of colours and particularly by the white speculum. It is first recorded by a similar name (gaddel) by Merrett in 1667. This is thought to be onomatopoeic, referring to its incessant chattering. Old regional names for the gadwall include the insulting ("bastard" - Sussex), the unimaginative ("grey duck" - The Fens) and the lazy ("sand wigeon" - Essex). This drake gadwall was standing in the shallows of The Serpentine in Hyde Park, London.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Lumix FZ1000 2