Singing Swans
today we use the swan ’ sulfur sing as a proverb as many have done throughout the ages. The expression is found in Erasmus of Rotterdam ’ randomness Adagia, that came out in different edition, one greater than the other, from 1500–1536. Erasmus believed the proverb to spring from the swans ’ song just before they die .
This estimate of swans singing before they die is much older than Erasmus, ancient really. many Ancient Greek scholars spoke of the affirm as a singer and pointed out that they sing the most beautifully equitable before they die.
Reading: Cygnea Cantio: The Swan-song
Learn about more proverbs : Omnia Vincit Amor : Love in Ancient Rome
many Romans besides described the roll as a singer and the connection between their song and death. Martial wrote in one of his celebrated epigrams :
“ Dulcia defecta modulatur carmina tongue, Cantator cygnus funeris ipse sui. ”— Martialis 13.77
i.e. ” The swan, chanter of its own death, modulates sweet songs with failing tongue. ” ( transl. Shackleton Bailey, 1993 )
Ovid excessively, mentions the fatal song in his Metamorphoses :
Read more : Do Birds Like Oranges In Winter? Birds Advice
“ Illic semen lacrimis ipso modulata dolore
verba sono tenui maerens fundebat, do olim
carmina iam moriens canit exequialia cygnus. ”— Ovidius, Met. XIV. 428–30
i.e. “ In tears she poured out words with a dim voice,
lamenting her sad suffering, as when the swan
about to die sings a funereal dirge. ” ( transl. More, 1922 )
TITELPAGE OF “DEN SINGENDE SWAEN” (“THE SINGING SWAN”) BY WILLEM DE SWAEN TE GOUDA. ENGRAVING MADE BY REINIER VAN PERSIJN IN 1655.
Pliny ’ s position
Pliny the Elder, however, was not a believer of the swan-song stating that observations of swans have shown that the stories of dying swans ’ singing were false .
He wrote in his Naturalis Historia :
“ olorum morte narratur flebilis cantus, falso, utah arbitror, aliquot experimentis, ”— Plinius, Nat. Hist. X.32.
i.e. ” A story is told about the mournful song of swans at their death—a false story as I judge on the potency of a certain number of experiences ” ( transl. Rackham, 1938 )
References
Martial. Epigrams, Volume III : Books 11–14. Edited and translated by D. R. Shackleton Bailey. Loeb Classical Library 480. Cambridge, MA : Harvard University Press, 1993 .
Ovid. Metamorphoses. Brookes More. Boston. Cornhill Publishing Co. 1922 .
Pliny. Natural History, Volume I : Books 1–2. Translated by H. Rackham. Loeb Classical Library 330. Cambridge, MA : Harvard University Press, 1938 .
I am broadly interested in how human activities influence the ability of wildlife to persist in the modified environments that we create.
Specifically, my research investigates how the configuration and composition of landscapes influence the movement and population dynamics of forest birds. Both natural and human-derived fragmenting of habitat can influence where birds settle, how they access the resources they need to survive and reproduce, and these factors in turn affect population demographics. Most recently, I have been studying the ability of individuals to move through and utilize forested areas which have been modified through timber harvest as they seek out resources for the breeding and postfledging phases. As well I am working in collaboration with Parks Canada scientists to examine in the influence of high density moose populations on forest bird communities in Gros Morne National Park. Many of my projects are conducted in collaboration or consultation with representatives of industry and government agencies, seeking to improve the management and sustainability of natural resource extraction.