Birthday boobies

Since 2012 I have published Christmas card audits. I don't usually write about birthday cards, but this year a card from my Mum prompted me to think about a bird that has recently become popular for some reason...

In case you've never heard of a booby (or boobie) before, it's a class of dorky looking seabird that lives in the Pacific Ocean. There are six types, although the best known ones are the blue-footed booby. There is also a red-footed booby, a brown booby and a masked booby. The name 'booby' probably derives from the Spanish word 'bobo' meaning stupid not from anything else known by the same name!

Recently, boobies have started to become quite popular in children's books. A blue footed booby appears on the cover of You're Called What?! by Kes Gray (illustrated by Nikki Dyson) and author and illustrator Rob Biddulph has written a book about red footed boobies trying to track down a blue footed booby they suspect of stealing baked goods. 

The Galapagos Conservation Trust uses lovely drawings of several species of booby on merchandise to raise funds for their vital conservation work. For my birthday my Mum (assisted by Cathy and my brother) also gave me a hoody featuring a blue-footed booby, a red-footed booby and a nazca booby. It tied in very nicely with the card. "I know you like boobies," she said, before adding "I have to be careful how I tell people that you like boobies."

These sea birds have become popular because of their funny name. As a fully growed man I find the thought of walking round with boobies on my jumper quite funny. In my experience kids find books and other references to boobies hilarious too. I hope the work of the organisations like the Galapagos Conservation Trust means these funny looking birds survive to amuse us all for a good time to come.