School: Carrigeencor (roll number 10826)
- Location:
- Carrigeencor, Co. Leitrim
- Teacher: Mrs Annie Gillmor
Archival Reference
The Schools’ Collection, Volume 0200, Page 063
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- XML School: Carrigeencor
- XML Page 063
- XML “Bird-Lore - The Cuckoo”
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- The cuckoo is a bird of a dull greyish brown plumage. She arrives here in April. "The Cuckoo Storm" is always in April, and we don't hear her singing until after the storm, although she is here.Her maid as she is called here is the Ray-og. This is the bog sparrow its the same colour as the lark but not as big, follows her. The cuckoo is a shy bird, she builds no nest, but places her eggs one at a time in the nests of other birds even removing the eggs of the nest's owner in order to leave plenty of room for her own. Once the egg is placed in her neighbours nest the cuckoo gives it no more attention, and it is hatched, and reared by its foster parents. While the young cuckoo is featherless and quite blind, it hoists its foster brothers and sisters one by one on its back, climbs backwards up the side of the nest, and tosses them out. In this was he secures for himself all the food the foster parents bring to the nest, and he grows very quickly and is soon larger than its foster parents. Sometimes the old bird alights on the youngster's head, and feed him from here.The cuckoo comes here for his favourite food, the woolly caterpillars. Few birds feeds on those insects, so the cuckoo can be forgiven his shortcomings(continues on next page)
- Collector
- Mrs Annie Gillmor
- Gender
- Female
- Occupation
- Múinteoir
