De Arte Venandi cum Avibus, literally “On The Art of Hunting with Birds”, is a Latin treatise on ornithology and Falconry written in the 1240s by Frederick II, and dedicated to his son Manfred.
image: Bibliotheca Vaticana, Pal. lat. 1071. folio 16r
![General Attributes
A bat is not a noble bird. It is unlike other birds in that it gives birth to live young instead of laying eggs, and it has teeth. Bats gather together and hang from high places like a bunch of grapes; if one falls, all the rest also fall.
Pliny the Elder [1st century CE] (Natural History, Book 10, 81): The bat is the only flying creature that bears live young and feeds them with its milk; it also carries its children in its arms as it flies.
Isidore of Seville [7th century CE] (Etymologies, Book 12, 7:36): The bat, unlike other birds, is a flying quadruped, resembling a mouse. It has its name (vespertilio) from the time when it flies, after twilight. It flies about driven by precipitate motion, hangs from frgile branchs, and makes a sound like a squeak.](http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lyeea8EuL01qfg4oyo1_1280.jpg)
General Attributes
A bat is not a noble bird. It is unlike other birds in that it gives birth to live young instead of laying eggs, and it has teeth. Bats gather together and hang from high places like a bunch of grapes; if one falls, all the rest also fall.
Pliny the Elder [1st century CE] (Natural History, Book 10, 81): The bat is the only flying creature that bears live young and feeds them with its milk; it also carries its children in its arms as it flies.
Isidore of Seville [7th century CE] (Etymologies, Book 12, 7:36): The bat, unlike other birds, is a flying quadruped, resembling a mouse. It has its name (vespertilio) from the time when it flies, after twilight. It flies about driven by precipitate motion, hangs from frgile branchs, and makes a sound like a squeak.
Source: bestiary.ca
In the Middle Ages women and men often doted on their pets. In York Minster, there is a portrait of the lap dog of Lady Margaret Roos, rendered in stained glass. The dog looks happy and sleek, with a belled collar.
In the picture here of Tobias and Sara, a window of about 1520 from Cologne, the couple’s pet dog is a sleepy symbol of wedded tranquillity.
In other drawings of medieval pets, the British Library has a manuscript showing a woman with a pet squirrel while the Luttrell Psalter shows a collared pet squirrel as a sign of status.
Birds were also popular. Jays and magpies - called ‘pies’ - were kept in cages and taught to copy speech. Larks and nightingales were kept for their sweet songs.
Source: historicalhussies.blogspot.com
Brooch in the Form of a Bird of Prey, 500–600
Vendel; made in Scandinavia
Copper alloy with silver overlay
This crouching bird of prey, usually identified as an eagle, is thought to represent Odin, the supreme god of war and battle in Nordic mythology. The design is an early example of the sort of animal motifs that become so important in Viking art.
Source: metmuseum.org
![Hoopoe
Latin name: Hupupa
Other names: Epopus, Hupe, Hupelot, Huppe, Upupa
The young care for their elderly parents
General Attributes
When the hoopoe get old and their eyes grow dim, their children come to care for them. The children pull out the old feathers and lick the mist off their parents’ eyes, rejuvinating the old birds. The young say they do this to repay their parents for caring for them. (Some writers ascribe these characteristics to the stork instead.)
The hoopoe is said to be a filthy bird that collects human dung and builds its nest with it, and eats bad-smelling excrement. It also likes to live around tombs. It is further said that if the blood of the hoopoe is rubbed on a sleeping man, devils will try to strangle him.
Allegory/Moral
Children should follow the example of the hoopoe and care for their parents when they are old, as their parents cared for them.
Pliny the Elder [1st century CE] (Natural History, Book 10, 44): The hoopoe changes its appearance at different times of the year. It is a foul-feeding bird. It has a flexible crest which it can draw together and raise up along the whole length of its head.
Isidore of Seville [7th century CE] (Etymologies, Book 12, 7:66): The hoopoe (upupa) inspects and feeds on human excrement; its is a disgusting bird, always staying near tombs and excrement. On its head it has a helmet of upstanding crests.
Illustration
The illustrations of the hoopoe usually show a crested bird, often with young birds grooming it. Occasionally the crest is omitted.
source](http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lht666GuLq1qfg4oyo1_400.jpg)
Hoopoe
Latin name: Hupupa
Other names: Epopus, Hupe, Hupelot, Huppe, Upupa
The young care for their elderly parents
General Attributes
When the hoopoe get old and their eyes grow dim, their children come to care for them. The children pull out the old feathers and lick the mist off their parents’ eyes, rejuvinating the old birds. The young say they do this to repay their parents for caring for them. (Some writers ascribe these characteristics to the stork instead.)
The hoopoe is said to be a filthy bird that collects human dung and builds its nest with it, and eats bad-smelling excrement. It also likes to live around tombs. It is further said that if the blood of the hoopoe is rubbed on a sleeping man, devils will try to strangle him.
Children should follow the example of the hoopoe and care for their parents when they are old, as their parents cared for them. Pliny the Elder [1st century CE] (Natural History, Book 10, 44): The hoopoe changes its appearance at different times of the year. It is a foul-feeding bird. It has a flexible crest which it can draw together and raise up along the whole length of its head. Isidore of Seville [7th century CE] (Etymologies, Book 12, 7:66): The hoopoe (upupa) inspects and feeds on human excrement; its is a disgusting bird, always staying near tombs and excrement. On its head it has a helmet of upstanding crests. The illustrations of the hoopoe usually show a crested bird, often with young birds grooming it. Occasionally the crest is omitted.
Allegory/Moral
