Many Victorians were fascinated by the world of wild birds. Writers like Eliza Brightwen and Olivia Thorne Miller were avid observers of the avian world, and delighted in recording the behaviors and antics of "special" birds who inhabited their gardens. Sometimes a wild bird might, by accident or design, become a member of the household; some simply passed through, like sparrows sheltering from a storm, and some decided to stay permanently. These tales bring you accounts of the feathered folk of the Victorian world - not quite pets, yet not completely wild.

A Clever Raven (Girl's Own Paper, 1880)

Poor Josie: The Story of a Rescued Starling, by Arion (Little Folks, 1883)

The pampered pet of the household after falling down the chimney, Josie learned quite a repertoire of words - and enjoyed scaring sparrows by imitating the cat!

A Study of a Cat-Bird, by Olive Thorne Miller (Atlantic Monthly, 1883)

Observations of a cat-bird that made itself at home in the author's house!

Pasha: The Story of a Parrot, by H.E. Gray (Girl's Own Paper, 1888)

Storm-Bound Sparrows, by W. Lewis Fraser (St. Nicholas, 1889)

How a family cared for a family of New York sparrows downed by a winter storm.

The Ways and Whims of Thomas [a Titmouse], by Alfred Bamford (Cassell's Family Magazine, 1890)

Talking Birds, by A.T. Elwes (Girl's Own Paper, 1892)

Accounts of a variety of conversational avians, including jackdaws, jays, magpies, starlings and mynah birds.

Little Boy Blue, by Olivia Thorne Miller (Atlantic Monthly, 1893)

A tale of a bluejay.

Asnapper: The Brown Owl, by Eliza Brightwen (Girl's Own Paper, 1895)

Eliza Brightwen's account of sharing her drawing-room with a particularly sociable bird.

A "Fairy" Story, by Eliza Brightwen (Girl's Own Paper, 1895)

Her "fairy" was a tiny whitethroat, which took baths in her soapdish!

Our Storks (Girl's Own Paper, 1895)

Tame Doves, by Eliza Brightwen (Girl's Own Paper, 1895)

Animal Actualities 4: A Dove and a Toad (The Strand, 1898)

A tale of misplaced affections.

Animal Actualities 7: The Discomfited Pug (The Strand, 1898)

Outwitted by a captive raven!

Animal Actualities 18: The Demon Crow (The Strand, 1900A)

Animal Actualities: Puss and the Parrot (The Strand, 1900)

What terrible creature was this, that talked like a man?

Animal Actualities: Our Mag (The Strand, 1900)

Either a lesson as to why a magpie shouldn't feed a jackdaw chick, or why a jackdaw chick shouldn't beg food from a magpie...

The Sorrows of a [Robin] Son and Heir (Girl's Own Paper, 1898)

Rivalry between a pair of robins.

Mischievous Jack, by Eliza Brightwen (Girl's Own Paper, 1899)

A charming account of a semi-tame jackdaw who wreaks havoc in the home and aviary!

Birds of Passage, by W.S. Harwood (St. Nicholas, 1900A)

About a pair of cranes who took temporary refuge on a Great Lakes steamer.

Merops/Merops Married, by Eliza Brightwen (Girl's Own Paper, 1901)

The tale of Merops, a partially tame, solitary rook -- solitary until, at last, he finds his feathered soul-mate!

Ortolans, by Eliza Brightwen (Girl's Own Paper, 1902)

Naturalist Eliza Brightwen's "great failure," an attempt to keep a pair of ortolans.

Tame Moor-Hens (Good Words, 1902)

Animal Actualities 17: Cuckoo, the Little Police Constable (The Strand, 1900)

An episode of "Animal Actualities" recounting the tale of a cockatoo vs. a burglar.

See also:

• Caring for Pet Birds

• Song Birds & Game Birds

• Bird Species