crows crows crows

leaves half eaten yamataro at work . . . yamataro squashed on the wall

We have large flocks of crows these days, coming to feed on the yamataro-catarpillars which appear in thousands to feed on a special autumn weed.
The crows are leaving their "output" on the road and on my roof and everywhere ...


... the same food chain every year
... the same excitement evey year
... the same old haiku every year ...


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quote
a murder of crows

-This more poetic term for a flock of crows can be traced back at least to the 15th century, when it was recorded as a murther of crowes. Murther is a variant of Middle English murthre 'murder,' though the th sound had begun to be replaced with a d around 1300 C.E. There are several theories as to how this particular term came about, but all of them have to do with the supposed behavior of crows.

For instance, crows are scavengers and therefore often seen feeding on rotting bodies of various sorts. Survivors of wars have described how the battlefields were covered in black as crows (and ravens) came down to eat the dead. Another theory hearkens back to old folklore which told of groups of crows essentially holding court over members of their flock that had committed offenses. If they decide against the "defendant" crow, then the rest of the flock swoops down on it and kills it.

There are legends outside of the Germanic culture that relate to crows being judges over people as well, and how their appearance is an omen of death.
source : livejournal.com/word_ancestry 　


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A murder of crows
is a phrase employing a collective noun to refer to a group of crows.

A Murder of Crows may refer to:

A Murder of Crows (film), 1999 film
A Murder of Crows (album), 2003 studio album by Deadsoul Tribe
A Murder of Crows, a level in Myth II
The Murder of Crows, a level in Hitman: Blood Money
Sword of the Stars: A Murder of Crows, an expansion to the video game Sword of the Stars
©　More in the WIKIPEDIA !


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Caw, caw cuts the air
black fluttering in the trees
a murder of crows

Yutaka Kitajima, 2007

source : www.asahi.com/english/haiku


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. Crow, Raven (karasu) KIGO 　



. . . Read my Haiku Archives 2010

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