St. Melangell (pronounced “Mel-eng-eth”) is the patron saint of hares and rabbits. They are sometimes called St. Melangell’s lambs.
According to Welsh legend, Melangell was the daughter of King Cyfwich Addwyn, who is mentioned in the Tales of Culhwch and Olwen as a member of King Arthur’s court. King Cyfwich Addwyn was said to be related to St. Helen of Caernarvon, the famous Elen Luyddog (Helen of the Hosts) who married the Roman general, Magnus Maximus (Macsen Wledig) the 4th century emperor in Britain, Gaul and Spain. Elen’s story is told in The Dream of Macsen Wledig, one of the tales associated with the Welsh epic, Mabinogion.
In most accounts Melangell is described as the daughter of an Irish king who fled from her father’s court to avoid marriage. Around 590 A.D., she arrived at the valley of the river Tanat, at the foot of the Berwyn mountains in Powys, Wales. 
In 604 A.D. the prince of Powys, Brochwel Ysgithrog, went hunting close to where Melangell lived and prayed. His hounds pursued their prey into a thicket, where he found a young woman with a hare lying under the fold of her garments. She boldly faced the hunting dogs and they retreated. The prince gave up the chase and sat down to listen to Melangell’s story. She told him she was a hermitess who lived nearby and had dedicated herself to God. The prince and his huntsmen were the first men she had seen in 15 years.
So moved was the prince that he offered her the valley where she lived as a perpetual asylum and refuge for animals, and anyone who was fleeing harm. Melangell lived there the rest of her life, eventually attracting a small community of women for whom she served as abbess. A church was eventually built in the spot where she lived and it remained a place of sanctuary throughout the Middle Ages. The killing of hares and rabbits has long been forbidden in the region, because people believe they are sacred animals under the protection of St. Melangell. People in the parish still honor this custom. 
The association of religious female figures and hares is legendary and predates Melangell by several centuries. When the Romans invaded the British Isles, Julius Caesar saw that Celtic people did not regard it lawful to kill and eat the hare. In Ireland the hare was associated with women who could shapeshift into their form, so eating them was taboo. There is a legend that the God and warrior, Oisin, hunted a hare, wounding it in the leg. He followed the wounded animal into a thicket, where he found a door leading down into the ground. He went in and came to a large hall where he found a beautiful young woman sitting on a throne bleeding from a leg wound.
Boudicca, the British warrior queen, was said to have prayed to a hare goddess before going into battle with the Romans and released a hare from beneath her gown to divine the outcome of the battle from the hare’s movements. She also took a hare with her into battle to ensure victory and it was said to have screamed like a woman from beneath her cloak.
Boudicca probably prayed to Eostre, the Celtic version of the Anglo-Saxon goddess, Ostara. Ostara gave her name to the celebration of Easter. She was associated with the seasonal change from winter to spring. Ostara was a shapeshifter who took the form of a hare at each full moon. All hares were sacred to her and acted as messengers. 
Eostre/Ostara is mentioned by Saint Bede in his treatise, The Reckoning of Time, written around 725 A.D. Bede states that during the time period equivalent to April, Anglo-Saxons held feasts in Eostre’s honor. The tradition had died out by his time, replaced by the Christian Paschal month, a celebration of Jesus’ resurrection.
In his 1892 study on the hare in custom and mythology, folklorist Charles J. Billson cited numerous incidents of folk customs in northern Europe involving hares around the Easter season. Billson said, “whether there was a goddess named Eostre, or not, and whatever connection the hare may have had with the ritual of Saxon and British worship, there are good grounds for believing the sacredness of this animal reaches back into an age still more remote, where it is probably a very important part of the great Spring Festival of the prehistoric inhabitants of this island.”
The story of St. Melangell is a blend of local history, custom, folklore and pre-Christian goddesses and practices. Was Melangell created to legitimatize these beliefs, or is she another in a long line of spiritually powerful women with a hare as her symbol and companion?
St. Cuthbert (634-687 A.D.) was a Scottish shepherd boy until he was 15 when he became a monk in Melrose Abbey. He is also associated with Lindisfarne. He was a monk, bishop and hermit. Cuthbert lived most of his life in Northumbria, a region in northeast England by the Scottish border. While St. Cuthbert is famous for his protection of the eider ducks of Inner Fame island, he is known as the patron saint of otters. Many of his stories are taken from “The Life of St. Cuthbert” by St. Bede of Jarrow (672?-735 A.D.) 
Cuthbert liked solitary prayer and contemplation with only the seabirds and seals for company. It was his habit to walk alone down to the water after dark. One of the monks was suspicious or intrigued about his behavior and followed him to see what he was doing in the dead of night. From his hiding place the monk watched Cuthbert wade out into the dark North Sea until the water reached his neck and pray with the rhythm of the waves. At the first light of dawn he returned to the shore and knelt for more prayer. Two otters followed him out of the water. They warmed his feet with their breath and snuggled against his body to warm him with their fur. After Cuthbert gave them his affectionate blessing they returned to the water. 
The curious monk confessed his spying and Cuthbert forgave him. I thought the otter story was a little fanciful until I saw the behavior of this otter in a YouTube video.
I have kept a backyard bird log for over a decade. I note species, habits and any special occurrence—like hawk kills, mating pairs, the first bird of spring, sightings of rare birds like orioles. In the last few years I have seen less birds, different species and changes in feeding habits.
I was surprised to read an article on declining bird populations in the September 19, 2019 edition of the Wall Street Journal. “Bird Populations Plummet in North America” the headline reads. The Journal isn’t given to hysterical climate change stories, but the writer reported an alarming story.
Anecdotes from bird watchers and guesses among scientists led researchers to guess bird populations had declined; but the loss was much greater than originally speculated. Ornithologists from Cornell University reported that North America’s overall bird population had dropped 29% since 1970, with about three billion fewer birds now than nearly 50 years ago. Their study was published in the September edition of Science magazine.
Researchers attribute the decline in grassland birds to the broader impact of climate change, deforestation and shifts in agricultural practices. Habitat loss and the use of pesticides also had an impact on their decline. Grassland birds, which include species like finches and sparrows, saw its overall population fall 53%. The decline in this group in particular surprised researchers, since these birds are known for their adaptability to human landscapes.
I keep my lawn chemical-free to protect bees, water, and “helpful” insects like spiders, ladybugs and praying mantis from indiscriminate spraying. However, birds live in a wider area than my yard and many have not returned. Personally, I have no doubt that the decline in these birds is due to the impact of all the chemical fertilizers, herbicides, and insecticides homeowners and farmers pour on their land every year.
Have you noticed any changes in bird population or behavior in your yard, local park or farm?
Check out Chipperbirds guide to the world’s most beautiful birds.
I have had a number of thought and soul changing experiences with animals. I loved like a family member most of our dogs–especially Winston and Cutie. Constant in their affections, they taught me love and emotions are not limited to human beings. DOG really is GOD spelled backwards. Seeing a great horned owl against the moon in Pennsylvania is an image that will always stay with me. Hand feeding two baby robins from a ruined nest was a bonding experience. I wanted them to remain wild, so I never named them or kept them in the house. Each night I would put them in a short white pine to roost. I could recognize their peeps above the forest cacophony. I was sad when they departed, but happy I helped them to live. From time to time I would see a robin come close and look at me intently. I wondered if that was one of them, or one of their babies coming to check out the legend of the Mother Giant who brought their ancestors from Bay Ridge, Brooklyn and fed them worms, oatmeal and mashed cherries. 
In March 2019 I met Maurice at the Kanaloa Octopus Farm in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii. This aquaculture project began in an effort to help preserve and increase the declining reef octopus populations. A demand for octopus for food and bait has had a severe impact on their numbers. Scientists are trying to learn how to successfully breed octopuses for food and fishing and leave the wild ones alone. They are making progress, but haven’t been successful yet.
Maurice was rescued from a fishing boat where he was about to become bait or dinner. He is now part of the Kanaloa experiment. Visitors to Kanaloa get to interact with the octopuses. We discovered each one has their own individual traits and personalities. Some are curious, shy, grumpy, reclusive, aggressive, clever or playful. I’m sure there are more parts of their character, but those are the ones I observed in my hour at the aquaculture farm. 
After wiggling my fingers in the water to mimic a fish, Maurice came up from the bottom of his tank to investigate. He gently touched my fingers. I gently touched his tentacle. It was very smooth. The encounter reminded me of the fresco painting of Adam and God in the Sistine Chapel. One touch changed everything.
Ever since I met Maurice I cannot eat octopus and would never use them for bait.
Saint Natalis of Ulster (also spelled Naile, Naul, Naal) died in 563 or 564 A.D. He was a monk, abbot and contemporary of Saint Columcille. Natalis was a student of Columcille (Columba). and founded monasteries throughout Ulster, serving as abbot at St. Naul’s Abbey, Inver, Kinawley (Cill Naile), Inver Naile at Raphoe, County Donegal; and Devenish Island, County Fermanagh. The handle of a bell given to him by Saint Columcille was preserved at the church in Kinawley up to the 19th century. 
Saint Natalis appears in the Martyrology of Donegal (Calendar of Saints) written and compiled by Mícheál Ó Cléirigh around 1630. In the chronicle the stories about St. Natalis allude to his temper. Frustrated and thirsty, he flung his crozier at a rock pile. Miraculously, a stream of pure spring water began to flow. The spot became known as Cill Naile. The saint was was a dangerous man to cross. He cursed his enemies and people who opposed him. “I curse that Murchad with his descendants; defect of carving on his carving, and on himself, and on his families after him.”
According to legend, St. Natalis placed a curse on a clan which transformed their members into werewolves. Here is the tale:
An unnamed priest was traveling from Ulster to Meath on an important mission with his assistant, a young boy. The two stopped for the night near woods at the edge of the See of Ossory. As they lay down to sleep, the priest hears a human voice calling from the nearby forest. He gets up and looking out into the darkness and sees a giant wolf draw near. The priest and boy draw back in horror, but the wolf speaks in a human voice and tells them not to be afraid.“We are natives of Ossory,” the wolf said, “From there every seven years, because of the imprecation of a certain saint, namely the Abbot Natalis, two persons, a man and a woman, are compelled to go into exile not only from their territory but also from their bodily shape.” “But how came you by this fearsome form?” the priest asked in wonder. “And why must you wear it for seven years?” “I am a member of Clan Allta, a tribe of this region,” the wolf answered, “and like yourself, Father, we are believers in Jesus Christ and in the power of His salvation. However, in times long past, we were cursed for some ancient sin by the blessed Abbot Natalis.” The priest had heard of Natalis, who had come to Ireland shortly after the Blessed Patrick to bring the Word of God to a dark and pagan land. He had even read some of the holy man’s works. From what he had read, he had always imagined Natalis to be exceedingly severe and inflexible in his teachings and one who would brook no deviation from his own interpretations of God’s law.
“The sin which my clan committed has long been forgotten,” said the wolf, “but the curse is still in force. Every seven years two of us must lose our mortal form to wear the skin of a wild wolf and must live in the deep woods away from our clan. When the seven years are up we shed our animal form and regain our human shape and two others must take our place. It is a terrible burden, Father, and one that will never be lifted, for Natalis is long dead.” 
The wolf asks the priest accompany him into the woods to give the last rites to his mate, the female wolf. The priest is filled with terror that the wolf will kill him, but follows the wolf into the woods. He gives the dying wolf communion and blesses her. The male wolf returns the priest to his campfire and bids him farewell, loping back into the forest. The priest calls out after him saying he would return. On his way back to Ulster, the priest stopped in the woods of Ossory and searched for the werewolves but did not find any trace of them.
Saint Patrick and Saint Natalis are sometimes confused in the werewolf story. In one account, “it is told when the holy Patricius (St. Patrick) preached Christianity in that country, there was one clan which opposed him more stubbornly than any other people in the land; and these people strove to do insult in many ways both to God and to the holy man. And when he was preaching the faith to them as to others and came to confer with them when they held their assemblies, they adopted the plan of howling at him like wolves.”
St. Patrick responded by praying to God to punish the clan, resulting in them suffering “a fitting and severe through marvelous punishment, for it is told that all the members of the clan are changed into wolves for a period and roam through the woods feeding upon the same food as wolves; but they are worse than wolves, for in all their wiles they have the wit of men, though they are as eager to devour men as to destroy other creatures.”
Saint Natalis (Naal) and the Werewolves first appeared in Gerald of Wales’ Topographia Hibernica, written in 1185 A.D. The incident with the werewolves and the priest was supposed to have occurred two years before Gerald’s visit to Ireland with King John in 1175 A.D. While he was in Ossory, Gerald was approached by two priests sent by the bishop to ask him his view on this “serious matter.” Gerald met with the Bishop of Ossory and set down the story in writing, which was sent to Pope Urban III. It became one of the first werewolf stories ever recorded. A Norse work written about 1250 A.D., Konungs Skuggsja (King’s Mirror), describes Irish werewolves as being humans who were cursed as a divine punishment for wickedness. The tale is clearly based on the Ossory werewolves. 
The story of Saint Natalis and the Ossory Werewolves can also be found on Omnium Sanctorum Hiberniae, Library Ireland – The Wonders of Ireland, and Dark Emerald Tales.
