Some of us including me have heard that the name for a group of Baboons is called a Congress and one might see the coincidence with that branch of government’s approval ratings. However, according to Neil’s, “ThatAin’tRight.ForReals.Com” (my own personal fact-finding pseudo-organization), I have concluded this is absolute hooey or whatever term you might apply to falsehoods. A group of Baboons is in fact called a troop.
Okay, enough about terrestrial species. There are some interesting and funny terms for the collective nouns given to the species we frequently observe on our expeditions. My top three favorites are: A group of Loons is called an Asylum, a group of Murres is called a Fragrance (you can imagine why I would have thought it would be an Odor) and A group of Porpoise is called a Turmoil.
Here’s the complete list!
- Murres – Bizarre or Fragrance
- Eagles – convocation or aerie
- Cormorants – gulp or flight
- Puffins – colony, a puffinry, a circus, a burrow, a gathering, or an improbability
- Rhinoceros Auklets – colony, loomery, or raft
- Seagulls – colony, despite the popular group name from the 80’s it is not a flock of seagulls
- Loons – Asylum, Cry or Waterdance
- Ducks – flock, brace, raft, team, or paddling
- Whales – gam, herd, mob, Pod or run
- Porpoise – crowd, herd, pod, school, shoal, turmoil
- Sealions – When a group of sea lions is on land, it’s known as a colony. However, if the group is in the water, it is a raft. A group of female sea lions that belong to one bull is known as a harem.
- Seals – bob. harem. herd. pod. rookery
- Otters – romp, bevy, lodge, family, raft
- Bears – sloth or a sleuth
- Jellyfish – a bloom, smack, or swarm
- Sea Stars – galaxy, constellation, or a school
- Urchins – herd