mail: Bill Thayer	Italiano	Help	Up	Home
This webpage reproduces a section of Star Names Their Lore and Meaning by Richard Hinckley Allen as reprinted in the Dover edition, 1963 The text is in the public domain. This page has been carefully proofread and I believe it to be free of errors. If you find a mistake though, please let me know!

p418 Turdus Solitarius, the Solitary Thrush,

was formed by Le Monnier in 1776 from the faint stars over the tail-tip of the Hydra, where some modern seeker of fame has since substituted another avian figure, the Noctua, or Night Owl.

The title1 is said to be that of the Solitaire, formerly peculiar to the little island Rodriguez in the Indian Ocean, •344 miles to the eastward of Mauritius; although the bird has been extinct for two centuries, — as indeed now is the constellation.

Little seems to be known of this sky figure, although Ideler wrote of it as Einsiedler, the German Drossel.

---

The Author's Note:

1 The generic word Turdus, however, is erroneous; for the bird was not a thrush, but, as its correct name, Pezophaps solitaria, denotes, an extremely modified form of flightless pigeon allied to the dodos, yet larger and taller than a turkey.

Images with borders lead to more information. The thicker the border, the more information. (Details here.)
UP TO:	Allen's Star Names	Caelum Antiquum	Home
A page or image on this site is in the public domain ONLY if its URL has a total of one *asterisk. If the URL has two **asterisks, the item is copyright someone else, and used by permission or fair use. If the URL has none the item is © Bill Thayer. See my copyright page for details and contact information.