A great muckle specht hings on the bark
o a birken tree and hemmers on’t till dark;
spinks on rodden sprigs faa tirlin in a steer
wi blue tams on fatbaas strung on barbet-weir.
Slack-jaa’t jackdaas colloguin on the braunches;
birlin stirlins in joukin avalaunches
swypin throu the gairden, follain the heidyins
attackin, gabs knackin, divin doon an feedin.
Half-inchin brichtins daubin at the cages
o the peanut hingers an grippin on for ages
as the yalla-beakit blackmerle loups aff the grun
knippin up the smaa-est o the bittocks to be foun.
Hoose sparra, tree-speeler caa-cannie seedock
reeshlin in the leaf mowd climmin fae a hummlock
jabbin intae smaa cracks peckin at the deid-heids
an aa the wee craturs hidin neth the rone-weeds.
Flisterin and flichertin aa the birdies singin
in chorus tae the win for the weather at it’s bringin
but it stops in an meenit aa the wee birds an thir chitterin
ens in the shadda an the claas o willie-whip-the win.
© BH, 2022
The Scots equivalent of Garden Birds. Not quite a translation, more a ’transliteration’. The two poems were written in tandem, English first, in this instance, but competed together.
As I said for the other version, possibly a suitable kid’s poem but, hopefully, still with a slight rhythmic twist.
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