Live and learn (5)

 

Live and learn (5)

Nankeen breeches, Philadelphia, 1785-1815

Image source

Nankeen originally referred to a firmly-woven, hard-wearing material, yellowish-brown in colour, produced in Nanking, (now Nanjing) China. Nankeen is a corruption of the name Nanking. Later, material was dyed yellow to resemble Nankeen. 

The material was used in the 19^th century to produce working trousers, often known by the wonderful name, ‘Nankeen inexpressibles.’

Nankeen night heron (Nycticorax caledonicus)
Image courtesy Wikimedia Commons

The Nankeen night heron (Nycticorax caledonicus) is reddish-brown in colour, and so is also known as the rufous night heron. It is native to Australia, and found in many other parts of Australasia. It is almost entirely nocturnal, emerging after sunset to feed on crabs, crayfish, frogs, lizards, and a variety of insects including crickets, caterpillars and ants.

Nankeen kestrel (Falco cenchroides) with catch

Image courtesy Wikimedia Commons

Another rufous Nankeen bird, and native to New Guinea and Australia, is the Nankeen kestrel (Falco cenchroides) Though it is a falcon, it does not pursue its prey, although it often hovers over areas which might provide good hunting. One of its common names is the Mosquito hawk! Generally, it perches in full sight, scanning the ground for prey, mostly in the form of small rodents, and reptiles.

Live and learn (3)

 

Live and learn (3)

                                            Tawa 

                                    Image courtesy Wikimedia Commons 

 Two words this week, both relating to New Zealand.

Tawa (Beilschmiedia tawa) is a tall evergreen tree in the laurel family. It bears sprays of pale green flowers which develop large, purple fruits resembling damsons or plums. 

Tawa fruit 

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The fruit can be eaten, but is said to taste of turpentine! The stones, or kernels, can be roasted for food, and the bark used to produce a drink.

The timber is widely used for furniture and flooring.

Tawa 
Image courtesy Wikimedia Commons 

Tawa is also the South Asian name for a large, flat, circular griddle, used to cook chapattis and other flatbreads, and for frying meat, or paneer (often called ‘Indian cottage cheese’)

Weta 
Image courtesy Wikimedia Commons 

The second word is weta. Weta is a large, flightless brown insect in a group of about one hundred species in the grasshopper family. It is mainly nocturnal and omnivorous, often scavenging, though the giant and tree weta feed on lichens, leaves and fruit.   

It is native to New Zealand, and has few natural predators but has fallen foul of introduced mammals. Consequently, some weta species are now considered critically endangered.

Live and learn

 

Live and learn

The spike fiddle rested on the knee to be played.

 Image courtesy Wikimedia Commons

More words gleaned along the way – some will be instantly forgotten, I’m sure.

Erhu: the erhu is a two-stringed musical instrument from China, known as a spike or Chinese fiddle. There is more information here.

 Image courtesy Wikimedia Commons

'Not very long ago,

When we started for a show, 

We jumped aboard a street car, 

My! but it was slow.'

Jitney: Jitney is slang for a nickel, a five cent coin. A jitney is a low fare bus or car service, originating in the early twentieth century in the USA.

                                    Mahwa leaves and fruit

Image courtesy Wikimedia Commons

Mahwa: Mahwa or Madhuca longifolia is a fast-growing tropical tree found in India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Myanmar, and Sri Lanka. 

The leaves are eaten by a moth which produces wild silk, its flowers are used to make alcoholic drinks, and the bark has medicinal qualities. 

The seeds which follow the flowers provide oil which is used for skin care, detergent, soap, and vegetable butter. 

One of its popular names is Butter Tree.

It is a valuable, all-purpose tree.