The oozlum bird, also spelled ouzelum, is a legendary creature found in Australian and British folk tales and legends. Some versions have it that, when startled, the bird will take off and fly around in ever-decreasing circles until it manages to fly up its own backside, disappearing completely, which adds to its rarity. Other sources state that the bird flies backwards so that it can admire its own beautiful tail feathers, or because while it does not know where it is going, it likes to know where it has been. The ''

Oxford English Dictionary The ''Oxford English Dictionary'' (''OED'') is the first and foundational historical dictionary of the English language, published by Oxford University Press (OUP). It traces the historical development of the English language, providing a co ...

'' describes it as " mythical bird displaying ridiculous behaviour" and speculates that the word could have been suggested by the word ''ouzel'', meaning a blackbird (''Turdus merula''). The earliest citation recorded by the dictionary dates from 1858. A variant of the oozlum, possibly a mutation, is the weejy weejy bird, which has only one wing which causes it to fly in tighter, faster, smaller circles, until it disappears up its own fundament. The

oozlefinch The Oozlefinch is the unofficial historic mascot of the Air Defense Artillery – and formerly of the U.S. Army Coast Artillery Corps. The Oozlefinch is portrayed as a featherless bird that flies backwards (at supersonic speeds) and carrie ...

is an American relative without feathers that flies backwards ("to keep dust, trivia, and other inconsequentia out of his eyes") at supersonic speeds, and preys on enemy bombers, which it rips from the sky. The

has been adopted as the unofficial mascot of the United States

Air Defense Artillery The Air Defense Artillery Branch is the branch of the United States Army that specializes in anti-aircraft weapons (such as surface to air missiles). In the U.S. Army, these groups are composed of mainly air defense systems such as the Patrio ...

. The oozlum bird was the subject of the 1970 British film '' Carry On Up the Jungle''. There was also a recurring joke in an episode of the

BBC radio BBC Radio is an operational business division and service of the British Broadcasting Corporation (which has operated in the United Kingdom under the terms of a royal charter since 1927). The service provides national radio stations covering ...

comedy, ''

The Navy Lark ''The Navy Lark'' is a radio sitcom about life aboard a United Kingdom, British Royal Navy Frigate#Modern Age, frigate named HMS ''Troutbridge'' (a play on HMS Troubridge (R00), HMS ''Troubridge'', a Royal Navy destroyer) based in HMNB Portsm ...

'' that Lt Commander Murray ( Stephen Murray) did not know what the oozlum bird was. Sub Lieutenant Phillips (

Leslie Phillips Leslie Samuel Phillips (20 April 1924 – 7 November 2022) was an English actor, director, producer and author. He achieved prominence in the 1950s, playing smooth, upper-class comic roles utilising his "Ding dong" and "Hello" catchphrases. ...

) suggested that when young, oozlum birds fly straight, and it is only when they turn left that the trouble starts. The oozlum bird is sometimes used as a symbol of self-reference and circular argumentation. For example, author

Charles Seife Charles Seife is an American author and journalist, and a professor at New York University. He has written extensively on scientific and mathematical topics. Career Seife holds a mathematics degree from Princeton University (1993),Greenwood, Kath ...

wrote: "Like the mythical oozlum bird, Wikipedia seems to have the ability to fly around in ever decreasing circles until it flies right up its own rectum." The fabulous qualities of the oozlum bird are the subject of a poem by W. T. Goodge (1862–1909). In the poem ''The Oozlum Bird'', the bird is said to fly backwards and has the singular ability of being able to fly up in the air while letting the earth turn under it. The bird is said to be large enough to bear the weight of a man.{{cite web , url=http://www.poetrylibrary.edu.au/poets/goodge-w-t/the-oozlum-bird-0103001 , author=W. T. Goodge , title=The poem The Oozlum Bird from the book Hits! Skits! And Jingles , publisher=Australian Poetry Library , accessdate=June 22, 2013

References

Legendary birds British legendary creatures Australian legendary creatures

See also

References