Toponymie | Canton de Potton | Place Names

Sparrows are what we're talking about here!  Generally, sparrows are small, plump, brown-grey birds with short tails and stubby powerful beaks.  The differences between sparrow species can be subtle, although the house sparrow, so common around here, is predominately grey with rust coloured cap and shoulders.  Sparrows, physically similar to other seed-eating birds, such as finches, have an extra bone in the tongue.  This bone helps stiffen the tongue when holding seeds.  Sparrows are generally social birds, with many species breeding in loose colonies and most species occurring in flocks during the non-breeding season.  The sparrows are one of the few passerine birds that engage in dust bathing.  Sparrows will first scratch a hole in the ground with their feet, then lie in it and fling dirt or sand over their bodies with flicks of their wings.  They will also bathe in water, or in dry or melting snow.  They tend to be quite the noisy lot – though not unpleasantly so!^[1]