Scottish Country Dancing Dictionary

The Jackdaw

Scottish Country Dance Instruction

THE JACKDAW (J4x32) 4C set Ann Dix Reel Friends 2

1- 8 All set, 1s+2s also 3s+4s dance ½ double Fig of 8 (2s and 3s cast to start), 1s and 4s dance down/up into centre as 2s and 3s dance to ends
9-16 1s+4s dance set and rotate:
 Set, rotate singly and dance on 1 place clockwise, change places RH on sides and dance on 1 place. (2)(4)(1)(3)
17-24 All set and cross RH, 2s+4s also 1s+3s set on sides and turn (full)
25-32 All dance RSh reels of 4. 2413

(MINICRIB. Dance crib compiled by Charles Upton, Deeside Caledonian Society, and his successors)


Keith Rose's Crib Diagrams


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The Jackdaw - Scottish Country Dancing Instruction Video

Dance Information

The western jackdaw (Coloeus monedula), also known as the Eurasian jackdaw, European jackdaw, or simply jackdaw, is a passerine bird in the crow family.

The common name derives from the word jack, denoting "small", and daw, a less common synonym for "jackdaw", and the native English name for the bird.

Found across Europe, western Asia and North Africa, it is mostly resident, although northern and eastern populations migrate south in winter. Four subspecies are recognised, which mainly differ in the colouration of the plumage on the head and nape. Linnaeus first described it formally, giving it the name Corvus monedula.

Measuring 34-39 centimetres (13-15 in) in length, the western jackdaw is a black-plumaged bird with a grey nape and distinctive pale-grey irises. It is gregarious and vocal, living in small groups with a complex social structure in farmland, open woodland, on coastal cliffs, and in urban settings. Like its relatives, jackdaws are intelligent birds, and have been observed using tools. An omnivorous and opportunistic feeder, it eats a wide variety of plant material and invertebrates, as well as food waste from urban areas. Western jackdaws are monogamous and build simple nests of sticks in cavities in trees, cliffs, or buildings. About five pale blue or blue-green eggs with brown speckles are laid and incubated by the female. The young fledge in four to five weeks.

Jackdaw
Jackdaw


Dance information licensed under this Creative Commons Licence 3.0.
Text from this original Western Jackdaw article on Wikipedia.
Image copyright Markus Rantala under this Creative Commons Licence 3.0.

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