The 'merle' is another name for which common bird?
Le Merle noir and the British flute player Alexander Murray. Messiaen had a consuming, lifelong interest in ornithology and particularly bird songs. While not his first work to incorporate stylised birdsong, "Le Merle noir" was the earliest of his pieces to be based mainly on birdsong, and it foreshadows Messiaen's later, more extended birdsong-inspired pieces. Le Merle noir Le Merle noir ("The Blackbird") is a chamber work by the French composer Olivier Messiaen for flute and piano. It was written and first performed in 1952 and is the composer's shortest independently published work, lasting just over five minutes. This work has become a
Merle (dog coat) seen in certain red dogs. In America, a dog with the phantom merle coloring is described as being "cryptic for merle." A cryptic merle bred to a merle may produce merles, cryptic merles, or homozygous merles. Another mutation for cryptic merle has been identified by Dr. Helena Synková, and has been given the working name of "atypical merle". Eight breeds have been identified as having the mutation, those being: Dachshund, Great Dane, Chihuahua, Pug, French Bulldog, Koolie, Australian Shepherd, and Border Collie. It is recommended that if a breeder is unsure if their dog is merle or not, that they