55-635: Anas mollissima Linnaeus, 1758 The common eider (pronounced / ˈ aɪ . d ər / ) ( Somateria mollissima ), also called St. Cuthbert's duck or Cuddy's duck , is a large (50–71 cm (20–28 in) in body length) sea-duck that is distributed over the northern coasts of Europe , North America and eastern Siberia . It breeds in Arctic and some northern temperate regions, but winters somewhat farther south in temperate zones, when it can form large flocks on coastal waters. It can fly at speeds up to 113 km/h (70 mph). The eider's nest
110-571: A Danish invasion became stuck hard on the road. During the medieval period, Cuthbert became important in defining the identity of the people living in Northumbria north of Tees. Symeon noted that it was the 'people of St Cuthbert', that is, 'the whole people between the river Tees and the river Tweed', who waged an unsuccessful campaign against the Scots at the Battle of Carham in 1018. By the later 11th century
165-493: A Roman Catholic school in Newcastle upon Tyne , is named after the saint. St Cuthbert's Day is celebrated with Mass, and the school prayers include reference to their patron saint (always ending with the invocation "St Cuthbert, pray for us"). The school badge features a bishop's crook in reference to St Cuthbert's time as a bishop, as well as ducks, reflecting his love of the animals. Another Roman Catholic secondary school to bear
220-537: A boy, employed as a shepherd, he had a vision of the soul of Aidan being carried to heaven by angels , and later found out that Aidan had died that night. Edwin Burton finds it a suggestion of lowly parentage that as a boy he used to tend sheep on the hills near that monastery. He appears to have undergone military service, but at some point he joined the very new monastery at Melrose, under the prior Boisil . Upon Boisil's death in 661, Cuthbert succeeded him as prior. Cuthbert
275-454: A favoured food. The eider will eat mussels by swallowing them whole; the shells are then crushed in their gizzard and excreted. When eating a crab, the eider will remove all of its claws and legs, and then eat the body in a similar fashion. It is abundant, with populations of about 1.5–2 million birds in both North America and Europe, and also large but unknown numbers in eastern Siberia ( HBW ). A particularly famous colony of eiders lives on
330-432: A high degree of natal philopatry , where they return to breed on the same island where they were hatched. This can lead to a high degree of relatedness between individuals nesting on the same island, as well as the development of kin -based female social structures. This relatedness has likely played a role in the evolution of co-operative breeding behaviours amongst eiders. Examples of these behaviours include laying eggs in
385-449: A life of great austerity. At first he received visitors, but later he confined himself to his cell and opened his window only to give his blessing. He could not refuse an interview with the holy abbess and royal virgin Elfleda , the daughter of Oswiu of Northumbria , who succeeded St Hilda as abbess of Whitby in 680. The meeting was held on Coquet Island , further south. In 684, Cuthbert
440-554: A little cell for himself. He is also said to have founded St Cuthbert's Church in Edinburgh . Cuthbert retired in 676, moved by the desire for a more contemplative life. With his abbot's leave, he moved to a spot which Archbishop Eyre identifies with St Cuthbert's Island near Lindisfarne, but which Raine thinks was near Holburn , at a place now known as St Cuthbert's Cave . Shortly afterwards, Cuthbert moved to Inner Farne island, two miles from Bamburgh , where he gave himself up to
495-628: A milkman Sean Connery , who later played James Bond . The Roman Catholic Diocese of Hexham and Newcastle holds St Cuthbert as its patron saint, with the consecration of bishops in the diocese always taking place on 20 March, Cuthbert's feast day in the Catholic Church. Many churches are named after Cuthbert. An Orthodox Community in Chesterfield , England, has taken St Cuthbert as their patron. Fossilised crinoid columnals extracted from limestone quarried on Lindisfarne, or found washed up along
550-456: A red lion walking and looking towards you on the silver top third portion of the shield.') The cross of St Cuthbert also features on the badges of the two Anglican secondary schools in Tyne and Wear , namely Dame Allan's Schools and Sunderland High School. St Cuthbert's Society , a college of Durham University established in 1888, is named after him and is located only a short walk from the coffin of
605-564: A set of vestments of 909–916, made of Byzantine silk with a "Nature Goddess" pattern, with a stole and decoration in extremely rare Anglian embroidery or opus anglicanum , which had been deposited in his tomb by King Æthelstan (r. 927–939) on a pilgrimage while Cuthbert's shrine was at Chester-le-Street. Cuthbert's shrine was destroyed in the Dissolution of the Monasteries, but, unusually, his relics survived and are still interred at
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#1732856050197660-769: Is a phylogeny based on a mitogenomic study of the placement of the Labrador duck and the diving "goose" Chendytes lawi . Clangula hyemalis Histrionicus histrionicus Polysticta stelleri † Camptorhynchus labradorius Somateria fischeri Somateria mollissima Somateria spectabilis Melanitta nigra Melanitta deglandi Melanitta perspicillata Bucephala albeola Bucephala clangula Bucephala islandica Mergellus albellus Mergus serrator Lophodytes cucullatus Mergus merganser Mergus octosetaceus Mergus squamatus Cuthbert of Lindisfarne Cuthbert of Lindisfarne ( c. 634 – 20 March 687)
715-453: Is among the objects later recovered from St Cuthbert's coffin , which is also an important artefact. After Cuthbert's death, numerous miracles were attributed to his intercession and to intercessory prayer near his remains. The 8th-century historian Bede wrote both a verse and a prose life of St. Cuthbert around 720. He has been described as "perhaps the most popular saint in Britain prior to
770-414: Is built close to the sea and is lined with eiderdown , plucked from the female's breast. This soft and warm lining has long been harvested for filling pillows and quilts, but in more recent years has been largely replaced by down from domestic farm-geese and synthetic alternatives. Although eiderdown pillows or quilts are now a rarity, eiderdown harvesting continues and is sustainable, as it can be done after
825-545: Is exceeded in North America only by smatterings of the Muscovy duck , which only reaches North America in a wild state in southernmost Texas (and arguably south Florida where feral but non-native populations reside). It measures 50 to 71 cm ( 19 + 1 ⁄ 2 to 28 in) in length, weighs 0.81 to 3.04 kg (1 lb 12 + 1 ⁄ 2 oz to 6 lb 11 oz) and spans 80–110 cm (31–43 in) across
880-476: Is incomplete. Some authorities separate the group as a subfamily, while others remove some genera. Most species within the group spend their winters near coastal waters. Many species have developed specialized salt glands to allow them to tolerate salt water, but these are poorly developed in juveniles. Some of the species prefer riverine habitats. All but two of the 22 species in this group live in far northern latitudes. The fish-eating members of this group, such as
935-620: Is now on display at the saint's shrine in Durham Cathedral. Cuthbert's cult also appealed to the converted Danes, who now made up much of the population of Kingdom of York , and was also adopted by the Normans when they took over England. Cuthbert's shrine at Durham Cathedral was a major pilgrimage site throughout the Middle Ages, until stripped by Henry VIII's commissioners in the Dissolution of
990-527: Is regarded as the patron saint of Northumbria. His feast days are 20 March ( Catholic Church , Church of England , Eastern Orthodox Church , Episcopal Church ) and 4 September ( Church in Wales , Catholic Church). Cuthbert grew up in or around Lauderdale , near Old Melrose Abbey , a daughter-house of Lindisfarne, today in Scotland. He decided to become a monk after seeing a vision on the night in 651 that Aidan ,
1045-634: The Danes took the monastery of Lindisfarne and the monks fled, carrying St Cuthbert's body with them around various places including Melrose . After seven years' wandering it found a resting place at the still existing St Cuthbert's church in Chester-le-Street until 995, when another Danish invasion led to its removal to Ripon. Then the saint intimated, as it was believed, that he wished to remain in Durham. A new stone church—the so-called "White Church"—was built,
1100-522: The Farne Islands in Northumberland , England . These birds were the subject of one of the first ever bird protection laws, established by Saint Cuthbert in the year 676. About 1,000 pairs still nest there every year. Because St. Cuthbert is the patron saint of Northumberland, it was natural that the eider should be chosen as the county's emblem bird; the birds are still often called Cuddy's ducks in
1155-562: The Firth of Forth . Cuthbert may have been from the neighbourhood of Dunbar at the mouth of the Firth of Forth in modern-day Scotland, though The Lives of the Fathers, Martyrs and Other Principal Saints ("Butler's Lives"), by Alban Butler records that he was fostered as a child near Melrose. Fostering is possibly a sign of noble birth, as are references to his riding a horse when young. One night while still
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#17328560501971210-403: The mergansers and smew , have serrated edges to their bills to help them grip their prey and are often known as "sawbills". Other sea ducks forage by diving underwater, taking molluscs or crustaceans from the sea floor. The Mergini take on the eclipse plumage during the late summer and molt into their breeding plumage during the winter. There are twenty-two species in ten genera : Below
1265-654: The 2011 documentary People of a Feather , which studies the historical relationship between the Sanikiluaq community and eiders, as well as various aspects of their ecology. The common eider is one of the species to which the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds ( AEWA ) applies. Eiders are colonial breeders. They nest on coastal islands in colonies ranging in size of less than 100 to upwards of 15,000 individuals. Female eiders frequently exhibit
1320-738: The Bishops of Durham had established a semi-autonomous region known as the Liberty of Durham , later the Palatinate of Durham , between the Tyne and Tees. Within this area the Bishop of Durham had almost as much power as the king of England himself, and the saint became a powerful symbol of the autonomy the region enjoyed. The inhabitants of the Palatinate became known as the haliwerfolc , which roughly translates as "people of
1375-506: The English zoologist William Leach . The genus name is derived from Ancient Greek σῶμα sōma 'body' (stem somat- ) and ἔριον erion 'wool'. The specific mollissimus is Latin , meaning 'very soft'. Both parts of the name refer to its down feathers . Six subspecies are recognised: The common eider is both the largest of the four eider species and the largest duck found in Europe, and
1430-483: The Monasteries . According to Bede 's life of the saint, when Cuthbert's sarcophagus was opened eleven years after his death, his body was found to have been perfectly preserved or incorrupt . This apparent miracle led to the steady growth of Cuthbert's posthumous cultus , to the point where he became the most popular saint of Northern England and Southern Scotland. Numerous miracles were attributed to his intercession and to intercessory prayer near his remains. In 875
1485-573: The Roman and Celtic Christianity, often exacerbated by Cuthbert's near-contemporary Wilfrid , an intransigent and quarrelsome supporter of Roman ways, was to be a major feature of Cuthbert's lifetime. Cuthbert himself, though educated in the Celtic tradition, followed his mentor Eata in accepting the Roman forms, apparently without difficulty, after the Synod of Whitby in 664. The earliest biographies concentrate on
1540-401: The area, "Cuddy" being the familiar form of "Cuthbert". In Canada's Hudson Bay, important eider die-offs were observed in the 1990s by local populations due to quickly changing ice flow patterns. The Canadian Wildlife Service has spent several years gathering up-to-date information on their populations, and preliminary results seem to show a population recovery. The common eider is the object of
1595-452: The arms of many of its constituent colleges. The University of Newcastle upon Tyne , formerly King's College in the University of Durham, also features St Cuthbert's Cross on its arms, granted in 1937. The Newcastle University arms are blazoned Azure, a Cross of St Cuthbert Argent, and on a chief of the last a lion passant guardant Gules. ('A silver Cross of St Cuthbert on a blue shield, with
1650-529: The basis of size and head shape. The drake's display call is a strange almost human-like "ah-ooo", while the hen utters hoarse quacks. The species is often readily approachable. Drakes of the European, eastern North American and Asia/western North American races can be distinguished by minor differences in plumage and bill colour. Some authorities place the subspecies v-nigra as a separate species. This species dives for crustaceans and molluscs, with mussels being
1705-453: The characteristic splayed shape, used later as the heraldic emblem of St Cuthbert in the arms of Durham and Newcastle universities, was found. The flag of County Durham since 2013 features the Cross of St Cuthbert, counterchanged in the county colours of blue and gold. The flag of Kirkcudbrightshire in Scotland since 2016 likewise features the Cross of St Cuthbert, whose name is the origin of
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1760-498: The county's name. The Cross of St Cuthbert features as the principal charge on the coat of arms of the University of Durham , granted in 1843, blazoned Argent, a Cross of St Cuthbert Gules, on a canton Azure, a chevron Or, between three lions rampant of the first ('A red Cross of St Cuthbert on a silver shield, with three silver fighting lions around a gold chevron on a blue square in the top left-hand corner'). The Cross also features in
1815-408: The death of Thomas Becket in 1170." In 698, Cuthbert was reburied at Lindisfarne in the decorated oak coffin now usually meant by St Cuthbert's coffin, though he was to have many more coffins. In 995, the "community of Cuthbert" founded and settled at Durham, guided by what they thought was the will of the saint, as the wagon carrying his coffin back to Chester-le-Street after a temporary flight from
1870-456: The ducklings leave the nest with no harm to the birds. The common eider was formally named by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in 1758 in the tenth edition of his Systema Naturae . He placed it with all the other ducks in the genus Anas and coined the binomial name Anas mollissima . It is now placed with two other species in the genus Somateria that was introduced in 1819 by
1925-519: The foreshore, which were threaded into necklaces or rosaries, became known as St. Cuthbert's beads . In Northumberland, the eider duck is known as the cuddy duck. While on the Farne Islands, Cuthbert instituted special laws to protect the ducks and other seabirds nesting on the islands. They still breed in their thousands off the present day Northumberland coast. In Cumbria, the civil parish and hamlet of Holme St Cuthbert are named after him, as
1980-484: The founder of Lindisfarne, died, but he seems to have experienced some period of military service beforehand. He was made guest-master at the new monastery at Ripon , soon after 655, but had to return with Eata of Hexham to Melrose when Wilfrid was given the monastery instead. About 662 he was made prior at Melrose, and around 665 went as prior to Lindisfarne. In 684 he was made bishop of Lindisfarne, but by late 686 he resigned and returned to his hermitage as he felt he
2035-451: The kingdom was a task that lasted throughout Cuthbert's lifetime. Edwin had been baptised by Paulinus of York , a Roman who had come with the Gregorian mission from Rome, but his successor Oswald also invited Irish monks from Iona to found the monastery at Lindisfarne where Cuthbert was to spend much of his life. This was around 635, about the time Cuthbert was born. The tension between
2090-621: The many miracles that accompanied even his early life, but he was evidently indefatigable as a travelling priest spreading the Christian message to remote villages, and also well able to impress royalty and nobility. Unlike Wilfrid, his style of life was austere, and when he could, he lived the life of a hermit, though still receiving many visitors. In Cuthbert's time the Kingdom of Northumbria included, in modern terms, northern England and southern Scotland on an intermittent and fluid basis as far north as
2145-580: The mediation of holy St Cuthbert and the presence of the said holy Relic". Whether the story of the vision is true or not, the banner of St Cuthbert was regularly carried in battle against the Scots until the Reformation , and it serves as a good example of how St Cuthbert was regarded as a protector of his people. A modern interpretation of the Banner, designed by Northumbria University academic Fiona Raeside-Elliott and embroidered by local textile artist Ruth O'Leary,
2200-488: The monastery, Eata and Cuthbert returned to Melrose. Illness struck the monastery in 664 and while Cuthbert recovered, the prior died and Cuthbert was made prior in his place. He spent much time among the people, ministering to their spiritual needs, carrying out missionary journeys, and preaching. After the Synod of Whitby , Cuthbert seems to have accepted the Roman customs, and his old abbot Eata called on him to introduce them at Lindisfarne as prior there. His asceticism
2255-670: The name of St Cuthbert is St Cuthbert's RC High School in Rochdale . Founded in 1968 as Bishop Henshaw School it was renamed to its current name in the late 1980s. The school's badge includes the St Cuthbert Cross and the motto "In Christ We Serve". St. Cuthbert's Co-operative Society (now Scotmid ) opened its first shop in Edinburgh in 1859, and expanded to become one of the largest co-ops in Scotland. Its dairy used horse-drawn delivery floats until 1985, and between 1944 and 1959 employed as
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2310-475: The nests of related individuals and crèching , where female eiders team up and share the work of rearing ducklings. Merginae Clangula Histrionicus Polysticta † Camptorhynchus Somateria Melanitta Bucephala Mergellus Lophodytes Mergus The sea ducks ( Mergini ) are a tribe of the duck subfamily of birds , the Anatinae . The taxonomy of this group
2365-577: The predecessor of the present grand Cathedral. In 999, his relics were enshrined in the new church on 4 September, which is kept as the feast of his translation at Durham Cathedral and as an optional memorial in the Catholic Church in England. In 1069 Bishop Æthelwine attempted to transport Cuthbert's body to Lindisfarne to escape from King William at the start of the Harrying of the North . In 1104 Cuthbert's tomb
2420-510: The saint at Durham Cathedral. The Society celebrates St Cuthbert's Day on or around each 20 March with a feast. "Cuth's Day", the annual college day, is celebrated in the Easter term with music, entertainment, festivities and drinking. Cuddy's Corse is a waymarked walking route between Chester-Le-Street and Durham Cathedral; it marks the journey between two of the last resting places of the coffin. Worksop College , founded as St Cuthbert's in 1895,
2475-508: The saint", and Cuthbert gained a reputation as fiercely protective of his domain. For example, there is a story that at the Battle of Neville's Cross in 1346, the Prior of the Abbey at Durham received a vision of Cuthbert, ordering him to take the corporal cloth of the saint and raise it on a spear point near the battlefield as a banner. Doing this, the Prior and his monks found themselves protected "by
2530-444: The site, although they were also disinterred in the 19th century, when his wooden coffin and various relics were removed. St Cuthbert's coffin (actually one of a series of several coffins), as reconstructed by Ernst Kitzinger and others, remains at the cathedral and is an important rare survival of Northumbrian carving on wood. When the coffin was last inspected on 17 May 1827, a 'Saxon' square cross of gold, embellished with garnets, in
2585-515: The wings. The average weight of 22 males in the North Atlantic was 2.21 kg (4 lb 14 oz) while 32 females weighed an average of 1.92 kg (4 lb 3 + 1 ⁄ 2 oz). It is characterized by its bulky shape and large, wedge-shaped bill. The male is unmistakable, with its black and white plumage and green nape. The female is a brown bird, but can still be readily distinguished from all ducks, except other eider species, on
2640-524: Was a saint of the early Northumbrian church in the Celtic tradition . He was a monk , bishop and hermit , associated with the monasteries of Melrose and Lindisfarne in the Kingdom of Northumbria , today in northern England and southern Scotland. Both during his life and after his death, he became a popular medieval saint of Northern England , with a cult centred on his tomb at Durham Cathedral . Cuthbert
2695-587: Was about to die. He was probably in his early 50s. Cuthbert was born (perhaps into a noble family) in Dunbar , then in Northumbria, and now in East Lothian, Scotland , in the mid-630s, some ten years after the conversion of King Edwin of Northumbria to Christianity in 627, which was slowly followed by that of the rest of his people. The politics of the kingdom were violent, and there were later episodes of pagan rule, while spreading understanding of Christianity through
2750-405: Was complemented by his charm and generosity to the poor, and his reputation for gifts of healing and insight led many people to consult him, gaining him the name of "Wonder Worker of Britain". He continued his missionary work, travelling the breadth of the country from Berwick to Galloway to carry out pastoral work and founding an oratory at Dull, Scotland , complete with a large stone cross, and
2805-486: Was consecrated at York by Archbishop Theodore and six bishops, on 26 March 685. But after Christmas 686, he returned to his cell on Inner Farne Island, where he died on 20 March 687, after a painful illness. He was buried at Lindisfarne the same day, and after long journeys escaping the Danes his remains chose, as was thought, to settle at Durham , causing the foundation of the city and Durham Cathedral. The St Cuthbert Gospel
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#17328560501972860-452: Was elected Bishop of Hexham at a synod at Twyford (believed to be present-day Alnmouth ), but was reluctant to leave his retirement and take up his charge; it was only after a visit from a large group, including King Ecgfrith , that he agreed to return and take up the duties of bishop, but instead as Bishop of Lindisfarne , swapping with Eata, who went to Hexham in Cuthbert's place. Cuthbert
2915-683: Was opened again and his relics translated to a new shrine behind the altar of the recently completed Cathedral. When the casket was opened, a small book of the Gospel of John , measuring 138 by 92 millimetres (5.4 × 3.6 inches), now known as the Saint Cuthbert Gospel (now British Library Additional MS 89000, formerly known as the Stonyhurst Gospel), was found. This is the oldest Western book to have retained its original bookbinding , in finely decorated leather. Also recovered much later were
2970-412: Was possibly a second cousin of King Aldfrith of Northumbria (according to Irish genealogies), which may explain his later proposal that Aldfrith should be crowned as monarch. Cuthbert's fame for piety, diligence, and obedience grew. When Alchfrith , king of Deira , founded a new monastery at Ripon , Cuthbert became its praepositus hospitum or guest master under Eata. When Wilfrid was made abbot of
3025-559: Was the last of the Woodard Schools to be opened. St Cuthbert is also the namesake of St Cuthbert's College in Epsom, New Zealand ; St Cuthbert's Day on 21 March is a day of school celebration. The school's houses are named after important locations in the life of the saint: Dunblane (yellow), Elgin (green), Iona (purple), Kelso (blue), Lindisfarne (white), Melrose (red), York (orange) and Durham (pink). St Cuthbert's High School ,
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