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Songbirds were a clade of birds that could be found in many parts of the Realms.

Species[]

Crow
Finch
Jackdaw
a species of songbird that had been on Toril as far back as the days of Netheril.[1] They had an instinctive desire to amass a horde of shiny objects.[2]
Lark
a species of songbird that had been on Toril as far back as the days of Netheril.[3]
Magpie
another species of songbird that was noted for its thieving tendencies with shiny objects.[4]
Nightingales[5]
Sorcery crows
a species of songbird that had scarlet plumage and resembled a crow. They possessed the unique ability to see into the Weave.[6]
Swallow
a species of songbird with colorful plumage,[7] whose existence on Toril dated as far back as the days of Netheril.[8]
Warbler

Ecology[]

Habitats[]

In Faerûn, songbirds were known to inhabit the Yuirwood,[9] the Forest of Mir,[10] the Farsea Marshes, and the Tun Marshes. The latter in particular was home to songbirds with brightly colored plumage, who preferred the mild climate and weather of the Tun Marshes.[7]

Songbirds could also be found in much of northwest Faerûn.[11]

Beyond Faerûn, songbirds of a wide variety of plumage could be found in the jungles and shores of Zakhara.[12] On that peninsula, there was a particularly large population of them in the city of Huzuz.[13] And the Palace of the Enlightened Throne also had many songbirds in it.[14]

Beyond the Prime Material plane, songbirds could be found in the forests of Barovia.[15][16]

Relationships[]

Songbirds were a favored animal of the deities Mielikki, Milil,[17][18] and Finder Wyvernspur.[19] Milil especially favored nightingales.[5]

Usage[]

  • In the city of Ravens Bluff, the store known as the Friendly Familiar sold songbirds as pets.[20] And in that same city, Nimber's Skewer Shop sold battered-and-fried songbirds.[21]
  • Tengu, of both the crow and humanoid variety, often kept songbirds as pets. They typically lived in cages hung from trees near a tengu's lair.[22]
  • In the Grand Bazaar of Huzuz, the merchant Minak al-Zafyi sold songbirds.[23]
  • Many Zakharans considered songbird to be a valued addition to urban gardens.[12] And they were particularly prized as pets in Huzuz.[13] In the bazaars of that land a songbird could fetch prices of around seven silver pieces to two gold pieces, while trained ones could fetch prices of seven to twenty gold pieces.[24]

Notable Songbirds[]

  • In Amphail, the store Maerlbar Eggs & Fresh Fowl had a golden-hued songbird on display in a bamboo cage. And its owner claimed that this was a Red Wizardess of Thay that had been trapped in that form by spells.[25][26]
  • The wight Gorra kept a caged, skeletal songbird in their office.[27]

Appendix[]

Appearances[]

External Links[]

References[]

  1. Clayton Emery (January 1998). Mortal Consequences. (TSR, Inc.). ISBN 0-7869-0683-9.
  2. Andy Collins, James Wyatt, and Skip Williams (November 2003). Draconomicon: The Book of Dragons. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 27. ISBN 0-7869-2884-0.
  3. slade, Jim Butler (October 1996). “The Winds of Netheril”. In Jim Butler ed. Netheril: Empire of Magic (TSR, Inc.), p. 38. ISBN 0-7869-0437-2.
  4. Jim Bambra et al (1986). Creature Catalogue. (TSR, Inc), p. 17. ISBN 0-88038-315-1.
  5. 5.0 5.1 Julia Martin, Eric L. Boyd (March 1996). Faiths & Avatars. (TSR, Inc.), p. 117. ISBN 978-0786903849.
  6. Will Doyle (2016). Drums of the Dead (Book 3) (DDEP07-02) (PDF). D&D Adventurers League: Tomb of Annihilation (Wizards of the Coast), p. 4.
  7. 7.0 7.1 James Butler, Elizabeth T. Danforth, Jean Rabe (September 1994). “The Cormyrean Marshes”. In Karen S. Boomgarden ed. Elminster's Ecologies (TSR, Inc), pp. 5–6. ISBN 1-5607-6917-3.
  8. Clayton Emery (May 1996). Sword Play. (TSR, Inc). ISBN 0-7869-0492-5.
  9. Anthony Pryor (June 1995). “Campaign Guide”. In Michele Carter, Doug Stewart eds. Spellbound (TSR, Inc.), p. 57. ISBN 978-0786901395.
  10. Steven E. Schend, Dale Donovan (September 1998). Empires of the Shining Sea. Edited by Julia Martin. (TSR, Inc.), p. 81. ISBN 0-7869-1237-5.
  11. Ed Greenwood and Jason Carl (July 2002). Silver Marches. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 41. ISBN 0-7869-2835-2.
  12. 12.0 12.1 Jeff Grubb and Andria Hayday (April 1992). Arabian Adventures. (TSR, Inc), p. 94. ISBN 978-1560763581.
  13. 13.0 13.1 Tim Beach, Tom Prusa and Steve Kurtz (1993). “Golden Huzuz”. City of Delights (TSR, Inc), p. 19. ISBN 1-56076-589-5.
  14. Tim Beach, Tom Prusa and Steve Kurtz (1993). “Gem of Zakhara”. City of Delights (TSR, Inc), p. 87. ISBN 1-56076-589-5.
  15. Bruce Nesmith, Andria Hayday, William W. Connors (1994). “Domains and Denizens”. Ravenloft Campaign Setting (TSR, Inc.), pp. 7–10. ISBN 1-56076-942-4.
  16. Andria Hayday and Bruce Nesmith (1990). Ravenloft: Realm of Terror. (TSR, Inc), p. 64. ISBN 0-88038-853-6.
  17. Julia Martin, Eric L. Boyd (March 1996). Faiths & Avatars. (TSR, Inc.), pp. 113, 117. ISBN 978-0786903849.
  18. Sean K. Reynolds (2002-05-04). Deity Do's and Don'ts (Zipped PDF). Web Enhancement for Faiths and Pantheons. Wizards of the Coast. p. 13. Archived from the original on 2016-11-01. Retrieved on 2018-09-08.
  19. Sean K. Reynolds (2002-05-04). Deity Do's and Don'ts (Zipped PDF). Web Enhancement for Faiths and Pantheons. Wizards of the Coast. p. 11. Archived from the original on 2016-11-01. Retrieved on 2018-09-08.
  20. James Lowder (January 1989). “The Living City: The Friendly Familiar Pet Shop”. In Jean Rabe ed. Polyhedron #45 (TSR, Inc.), p. 31.
  21. Ed Greenwood (October 1998). The City of Ravens Bluff. Edited by John D. Rateliff. (TSR, Inc.), p. 131. ISBN 0-7869-1195-6.
  22. Rick Swan (July 1990). Monstrous Compendium Kara-Tur Appendix. (TSR, Inc.). ISBN 0-88038-851-X.
  23. Tim Beach, Tom Prusa and Steve Kurtz (1993). “Gem of Zakhara”. City of Delights (TSR, Inc), p. 51. ISBN 1-56076-589-5.
  24. Jeff Grubb and Andria Hayday (April 1992). Arabian Adventures. (TSR, Inc), p. 87. ISBN 978-1560763581.
  25. Ed Greenwood (1993). Volo's Guide to the North. (TSR, Inc), p. 26. ISBN 1-5607-6678-6.
  26. slade, et al. (April 1996). “Cities & Civilization”. In James Butler ed. The North: Guide to the Savage Frontier (TSR, Inc.), p. 5. ISBN 0-7869-0391-0.
  27. Christopher Perkins, Will Doyle, Steve Winter (September 19, 2017). Tomb of Annihilation. Edited by Michele Carter, Scott Fitzgerald Gray. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 146. ISBN 978-0-7869-6610-3.
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