Early Birds

 

The birds to be ‘officially’ recorded in the British Isles before the year 700 AD were those which appeared in stories about the Saints or were listed in Anglo-Saxon literature such as “The Seafarer” and “Beowulf”. I have found a list of 16 species –
Robin (St Kentigern)
Crane (St Columba)
White-tailed Sea Eagle (St Cuthbert)
Carrion (or Hooded) Crow (St Cuthbert)
Wood Pigeon (St Aldhelm)
Nightingale (St aldhelm)
Swallow (St Aldhelm)
Chaffinch (St Aldhelm)
Cuckoo (St Guthlac)
Raven (St Guthlac)
Whooper Swan (Beowulf)
Gannet (Beowulf)
Whimbrel (The Seafarer)
Kittiwake (The Seafarer)
Tern (The Seafarer)
Quail (Exodus)

{I don't understand this last reference - the Bible wasn't set in Great Britain - so presumably it is some other Exodus - and I didn't think the Quail was ever a native speices. Can anyone enlighten me?}