A Plump of Seals and other Things

A few weeks ago, 

I wrote about a squabbling crowd of starlings 

that invaded the neighborhood. 

It was then that I learned a group of starlings is called a "murmuration,"

thanks to a 1975 reference book called 

"Dictionary of Collective Nouns and Group Terms" by Ivan G. Sparkes.

I tracked down a source and soon the book arrived at my door.

Reading through it has been an interesting diversion. 

So I thought I would share a few fun facts from Sparkes, 

who seems to have discovered collective terms

to describe the smallest to the largest members of the animal kingdom.

For example, Sparkes tells us that a large collection of ants 

(which are a scourge here every time it rains)

is called a "bike of ants."

On the other hand, a group of mites is correctly termed a "bite of mites."

I'm not sure that one would translate well into modern discourse.

But even less so is to describe lice as a flock.

The book says that butterflies congregating are a rabble, 

which seems to describe starlings better, given their poor reputation.

Kangaroos are a mob; elks are a gang, 

making them both sound a bit formidable, 

as if they lurk in the darkness and wait to jump unsuspecting humans.

If one has three foxes, they have a leash; if a couple of squirrels, a dray.

An aggregation of hippopotami is a bloat;

more than one giraffe is called a tower.

The Sparkes dictionary is entertaining 

and its descriptive terms are often on the mark.

Anyone who has had a cat shred their curtains can attest to 

why they are called a destruction.

But in fairness, cats are also called a clowder, a clutter, 

and perhaps because of their icy stares, a glaring.

 I couldn't wait to look up any alternate names for multiple dogs, 

since my husband and I currently share our home with five pekingese.

I expected the term pack, but it is apparently a modern description for dogs.

The older term is doggery. And I thought that fit our situation pretty well:

we reside with a doggery of dogs.

But another term caught my eye, 

this one specifically used to describe more than one pekingese.

More than one pekingese is called a pomp of pekingese,

which to me sounds like an ostentatious parade or an elaborate dessert. 

Here is my pomp of pekingese last Christmas: 

L to R: Xiao Xiao Jie 'Missy'; Cosme Mo Ming 'Cosi' (on floor); Liliang Xin, 'Lily'; 

Teddy Bear Blue 'Ted' (up for adoption, contact www.potomacpekes.org), 

and Wylie Po Zhong Qi 'Wylie' on the far Right.

They are adorable in the photo, looking every bit a pomp.

But when they come in from a rainy, muddy romp outdoors, 

trailing pine needles and leaves and a dirty residue in their wake,

I'd say 'doggery' suits them better.

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