SC - catching small birds

[Stefan li Rous]

Ras said:
> KallipygosRed at aol.com writes: 
> > Young boys would climb to the top of the cloisters, shoo out the birds, and 
> > then net them for use in dinners. >>
> 
> Documentation, please? Climbing into the rafters after the birds is correct 
> but we always climbed into the rafters after dark took the roosting birds, 
> wrung their necks and dropped them into the waiting cloth below.

Yes, I would suspect that throwing a net while perched on a rafter and entrapping
more than one or two would be difficult. I would expect a number could still
fly out the bottom if it loops over the rafter.

I would expect the net to work a lot better to toss over a small bush where
a number of bird were perched.

But for either method, wouldn't the rest of birds take off to a different
location after you caught a few? Can you actually grab or net more than a
few before the rest leave?

> <<> Heck of a lot of effort if the Masters of the castle didn't **eat** them 
> > or considered them **below station**.>>
> 
>  Also I have been led to believe 
> that dove cots were specifically used to house birds so that food would be 
> available during siege. I may be wrong. Awaiting enlightenment.

Many dovecots were not built in fortress locations, so I doubt they
were built for use only during a siege. Some of these dovecots were
hugh round towers. They housed a lot of birds.

A remember seeing a very good message on this list recently about
dovecots. Unfortunately, it is not in the Florilegium, yet.

- -- 
Lord Stefan li Rous    Barony of Bryn Gwlad    Kingdom of Ansteorra
Mark S. Harris             Austin, Texas           stefan at texas.net
**** See Stefan's Florilegium files at:  http://www.florilegium.org ****