Tag Archives: birds

Hawk

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Hawk. Hawks are the fierce little brothers in the eagle and vulture family. Adult hawks vary from one to two feet in length. They are known for their exceptional eyesight, which is about eight times as keen as man’s. Solomon remarked, “Surely, in vain the net is spread in the sight of any bird” (Prov. 1:17).

The farsighted hawk not only detects nets from a distance, but he can also see mice, insects, and birds. He strikes with devastating swiftness, his powerful claws crushing his prey, which he eats whole.
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Heron

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Heron. The Bible mentions herons only in the lists of unclean birds (Lev. 11:19; Deut. 14:18). Several species of herons and egrets made their home in Palestine. Egyptian carvings picture herons and their nests among the reeds of marshes and lakes.

A tall, graceful bird, the heron flies with its neck curled and its long legs stretched out behind. The heron eats fish, frogs, and small reptiles, which it spears swiftly with a long, sharp beak.

Source: [Anon-Animals]




More entries from Birds

Hoopoe

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Hoopoe.

The hoopoe is a beautiful bird with a disgusting habit: it probes foul places for insects with its sharp, slender beak. Its wing feathers bear a zebra stripe, and its head sports a lovely crown of feathers. When frightened, the hoopoe may flutter his crest or drop to the ground and play dead. The offensive odor picked up from its feeding grounds is enough to drive away most of its enemies.
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Kite

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Kite (see Hawk).

Source: [Anon-Animals]

The Kite. The kite is mentioned but once or twice in the Bible. In Leviticus, 11:13,14, it is named among the birds which the Israelites were not allowed to use for food. “And these are they which ye shall have in abomination among the fowls; they shall not be eaten, they are an abomination; the eagle, and the ossifrage, and the ospray, and the vulture, and the kite after its kind.” These are all birds of prey, that is, they live by destroying other animals, and some of them are very fierce and cruel; I suppose this is one reason why they were not to be eaten.
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Raven

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Raven is a bird associated with death, but also with sustaining life.

Raven.

In the Bible, raven is a catch-all term for crows, ravens, rooks, jackdaws, magpies, and jays. All were considered unclean by the Jewish people (Lev. 11:15). With a wingspread of about 1 meter (three feet), the raven is the largest member of this family. Raven
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Sparrow

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Sparrow. Sparrow is the name given to several different species of birds in the Bible. They ate grain and insects and gathered in noisy flocks. The psalmist wrote, “I… am like a sparrow alone on the housetop” (Ps. 102:7). These tiny birds were such social creatures that a lone sparrow was the symbol of deep loneliness.

Sparrows build their untidy nests in the eaves of houses. Sparrows were not driven away when they built their nests in the Temple (Ps. 84:3).
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Stork

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Stork.

This goose-sized bird looks ungainly in flight, with its legs dangling and its wings slowly flapping. But people in Palestine were always glad to see the storks on their yearly migration from Europe to Africa. Storks had the reputation of bringing good luck. If they were numerous, surely crops would be good. Farmers welcomed storks because they helped their crops by eating insects.

Both black and white storks were often seen in Palestine. White storks nest as high as possible– often on chimneys. But since houses in the Holy Land had low, flat roofs, they nested instead in the fir trees (Ps. 104:17). In spite of their commendable features, storks were considered unclean (Lev. 11:19; Deut. 14:18).
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