Broad Ripple Random Ripplings
search menu
The news from Broad Ripple
Brought to you by The Broad Ripple Gazette
(Delivering the news since 2004, every two weeks)
Subscribe to Broad Ripple Random Ripplings
Brought to you by:
Howald Heating & Air Brothers Bar and Grill

Everything Broad Ripple HomearrowRandom Ripplings Homearrow2020 03 12arrowColumn

back button return to index button next button
Right in my Own Backyard - Birds and cars - by Brandt Carter - Birds and cars
posted: Mar. 12, 2020

Right in my Own Backyard header

In the winter I like to read. The other day I was paging through The Bird Almanac by David M. Birds, Ph.D., when I ran across a list that piqued my curiosity. It was a list of automobiles named after birds. I was surprised that the list was very short - no match for the roster of cars named for mammals. This list included such grand monikers as Cougar, Mustang, Jaguar, Bobcat , Bronco, Pinto, and Stingray.
I would have thought many more cars would have been named for birds because of their similar attributes: speed, aerodynamics, color, and durability. Vintage autos named for birds have included the Crow, Crow-Elkhart Black, Duck, Eagle, Falcon, Golden Hawk, Power Hawk, Road Runner, Silverbirds, Silver Hawk, Sunbird, and Superbird. The Thunderbird and Tercel are current models keeping bird names alive in the auto industry.
Once this subject was racing through my mind, I was compelled to find the automakers who had branded their cars by birds. Can you identify them? Who manufactured the Eagle, Falcon, Firebird, Gull Wing, Golden Hawk, Lark, Road Runner, Sunbird, Thunderbird, and Tercel? Find the answers at the end of the column.
This Studebaker Hawk was built in South Bend, Indiana.
This Studebaker Hawk was built in South Bend, Indiana.
Quan


Then I began to think about additional possibilities - all kinds of them. A small car named for the Chickadee would be just the thing! Cardinal would be the ultimate for the reddest car in a line. And don't you think Curlew, Peregrine, Kingbird, Heron, Osprey, Frigate, or Tern could be good auto identities? I can see why names such as Vulture, Turkey, Loon, Goatsucker, Cuckoo, or Flycatcher will probably never be emblazoned on vehicles. What would you suggest if you had the chance to name a car for a bird? (This article is dedicated to all the past car dealerships in and around Broad Ripple like Bill Kuhn's Chevrolet.)

Answers: Eagle, AMC; Falcon, Ford; Firebird, Pontiac; Gull Wing, Daimler Chrysler; Golden Hawk, Studebaker; Lark, Studebaker; Road Runner, Plymouth; Sun Bird, Pontiac; Thunderbird, Ford; Tercel, Toyota.



Brandt Carter, artist, herbalist, and naturalist, owns Backyard Birds at 2374 E. 54th Street. Visit her web site www.feedbackyardbirds.com. Email your bird questions to Brandt@BroadRippleGazette.com




brandt@broadripplegazette.com
back button return to index button next button
Brought to you by:
Angie Mercer Insurance Broad Ripple State Farm Pawn Shop Pub
Brought to you by:
Broad Ripple Brewpub RandomRipplings.com Broad Ripple collector pins