Redstart - What’s in a name?

It’s easy to assume, with bird names, that we know what they mean, and often that assumption is quite correct. Woodpeckers peck wood & bee-eaters feed on bees. Other names seem almost wilfully obscure: what on Earth does the name puffin mean? Yet, while researching the origins of bird names one unearths all sorts of fascinating stories about them. The reason these names appear puzzling is down to the Norman Conquest of Britain. Thus, the Anglo-Saxon “red steort” (meaning red tail) turned into #redstart

#wildartworks, #redstart, #birdinginthewild, #birdphotography, #whitecappedwaterredstart, #whitebelliedredstart, #plumbeousredstart, #thrush