They call it a Ruff. No, it is not a misspelling. It is something of a misnomer.
Male Ruff. Photo by Karl Lukens
A Ruff is a bird that is found, mostly, in the Old World and less frequently in the New.
The name derives from the billowing neckwear of male birds when decked out in their alternate, or breeding plumage. If you look up ruff in the dictionary, you might find (as I did) this definition:
“A stiffly starched frilled or pleated circular collar of lace, muslin, or other fine fabric, worn by men and women during the Elizabethan Period.”
You’ve seen pictures of these things serving as the backdrop for the heads of assorted English noblemen. They resemble round, white scrub boards. They look uncomfortable as all hell.
Anyway Ruff is so-named because it too has a billowing collar around its neck (just like those high borne types). However, the ruff on royalty is commonly closed in the back; open in front. The ruff on a Ruff is roughest in the front, and sparsest in the back.
Like I said. Something of a misnomer. A ruff in part–maybe with a part or perhaps just playing the part.
Come to think of it, the painting of William Shakespeare shows the celebrated playwright wearing a ruff, too. I guess you didn’t have to be a blue blood to wear the thing after all. You didn’t even have to be male. Human females got to wear ruffs too.
Female Reeve. Photo by Kevin Karlson.
This is not the case with female Ruffs. Female Ruffs don’t don a ruff when they are in a courtin mood. In fact, their very rufflessness is even reflected in their names. They are called Reeve.
Or at the very least they used to be called Reeves. This sex-based differentiation has fallen out of favor in birding circles.
Nevertheless they used to be called Reeve and if you look up reeve in the dictionary, you’ll find:
“A high officer of local administration appointed by the Anglo-Saxon King.”
This translates to: “the person in charge.”
So with Ruffs, the male wears the ruff, the female wears the pants.
Now here’s a question for you. Which came first? The ruff of nobility or the ruff of Ruff?
Ruff of c.1575 Danley Portarit of Elizabeth I. Courtesy of Wikipedia.
One was certainly named after the other but which?
My guess (and it is only a guess) is that the ruff of Ruff antedates the ruff of fashion. I mean if the name reeve goes all the way back to Anglo-Saxon times, it stands to reason that male birds were dubbed Ruffs at the same time–roughly the age when you could still find forests, in England, and robbers to inhabit them.
Ruffs (and reeves) by the way are not forest birds. They are shorebirds. The are found, most commonly, around the edges of ponds and marshes. They have a penchant for flooded cornfields and marshes undergoing vegetative succession–something between all mud and all salad. It is common for Ruffs to turn up in a place for a year, or two, or three–and then, poof, gone like last year’s fashion.
Now. You are probably wondering why you are hearing about a bird dressed for an Elizabethan ball in a publication heralding from a town that worships all things Victorian?
Answer. I just saw a Ruff this morning and had a mind to write about it. You, dear reader, went along for the ride–i.e., you’ve been verbally reaved!
Feeling abused?
Ruff!