14 Whitman, [Vol. il 



WW. 2to.x^,ZdA. 2^1. 1:^1 : /jVaj.higere ; WW. 132. 5 : gaiauelcatamus~\ 

 364, 10 : cicuanus ~ ; 286. g : picHs uel gagia, higera ; Cp. P. 424 : picus, higre, 

 fina ; Ep. 156, Cp. B. 77 ; berna, higrae ; Er. 156 : ~ higrg ; Cp. C. 438 : cicua- 

 nus, higrae ; Cp. T. 315 ; traigis ~ ; Ep.-Er. 808 : picus, fina uel higrae ; M. 

 Gl. 307. note : ~higera. 



Riddle 25 is sometimes interpreted as the jay, but as the 

 name of the bird is formed by the runes G. A. R. O. H. L 

 it must be higora, the woodpecker, although this bird is 

 not generally considered a mimic. The riddle follows : 



Ic eom wunderlicu wiht, wrsesne mine stefne : 

 hwilum beorce swa hund, hwilura blaete swa gat, 

 hwilum grsede swa gos, hwilum gielle swa hafoc, 

 hwilum ic onhyrge SSone, haswan earn, 

 guSfugles hleotSor, hwilum glidan reorde 

 muSe gemaene, hwilum msewes song, 

 Saer ic glado sitte. . G . raec nemnaS 

 swylce .A. and .R., .O. fulleste<S, 

 . H . and . I . . Nu ic haten eom, 

 swa (Sa siex stafas sweotule becnatS. 



2. fina. Woodpecker. 



WW. 286. 8, 444 32, 2J1A. 240. 41, Cp. M. 35, Ep. 648 : marsopicus, fina ; 

 WW. 132. r4: picus -^ \ 260. 13, 444, 22: mursopicus ~ ; JE. Gl. 307. 8: 

 Jicus ~ ; Cp. S. 577 : sturfus ~ ; P. 424 : picus, higrere, fina ; Er. 648 : marso- 

 picus, pina ; Ep.-Er. 808 : picus, fina uel higrae. 



3. rindeclifer. Woodpecker ; < rind, bark + clifrian, 

 to scratch ; i. e. a ' barkscratcher.' 



WW. 427. 29: ibin, rindeclifre. 



Ord. Coccyges. Cuculine Birds. 



Sub. Ord. Cuculi. Cuckoos. 



Sub. F. Cuculinae. True Cuckoos. 



Gen. Cuculus. True Cuckoos. 



XXVI. geac. Cuckoo or gawk {cuculus canorus) ; per- 

 haps like cuckoo ultimately of imitative origin. ME. 

 gowke ; Icel. gaukr ; G. gauch. Gawk is the common 

 name of the cuckoo in Scotland and north of England. 



WW. 132. 6, 261. I, 286. 25, 367. 35, ZdA. 240. 38 :■ cuculus, geac ; Cp. C. 

 948 : ~ gxc ; Er. 265 : ~ gee ; WW. 413. 17 : geumatrex, geac ; Cp. G. 87 : 

 geumatrix ~ ; Seaf. 53 : swylce geac monaS geomran reorde, singetS sumeres 



