Troglodyte
Calling someone a troglodyte is abusive, but it’s not an insult that’s commonly used in the twenty-first century. There are other, far more stinging labels.
A troglodyte is a person who lives in a cave, the word primarily referring to prehistoric cave dwellers. It comes from the Greek trōglē (hole) and dyein (to enter)
In biology, the prefix troglo indicates how much a creature depends on caves. For example, bats and some insects can be described as ‘troglophiles,’ meaning that although they appreciate the shelter caves may afford, they can live outside them.
On the other hand, a ‘troglobite’ is an organism that is adapted to and dependent on caves, like the blind cave fish or cave salamander. Troglobites often have pale skin, poor or no eyesight, a slower metabolism, and heightened senses of touch, smell, or vibration awareness.
The troglodyte I heard and saw in the garden this morning is more correctly Troglodytes troglodytes, the wren. It is the commonest breeding bird in the UK, but surprisingly rarely seen, at least by me! It feeds on spiders and insects, searching among leaves to find them. It can often be seen creeping mouse-like round plant pots, seeking food.
Wrens do not have huge reserves of fat and
suffer appreciably in old weather. They huddle together for warmth, and in the
winter of 1969, 61 wrens were found in a nesting box in Norfolk.
They typically nest between March and July, and often produce two broods
per season.
How odd that the dear little wren off the farthing, is a troglodyte.
ReplyDeleteI had only a vague knowledge of troglodytes being ancient cave dwellers and had no idea about the wrens.
ReplyDeleteI did not know either of these words. But when's, yes, those i know. Here we have many Carolina wrens, and they are busy little bodies, not at all shy. They will fly right by your head and sit and scold you from just a few feet away. We often have a pair nesting somewhere around our front porch.
ReplyDeleteI love learning new words and you gave plenty of usage examples. I enjoyed your post. Thanks.
ReplyDeleteI think there was or were troglodytes in the original Star Trek series.
ReplyDeleteGuess it doesn’t say much for me that I immediately thought “troglodyte! I’ve forgotten that word. Must file it away to use as an insult!”
ReplyDeleteNow you've got me thinking . The house wren we have here has nothing to do with caves. . I will have to do some research.
ReplyDeleteAhh a bird!!!
ReplyDeleteI thought a troglodyte was one of the relatives on my husband's side.