20 Charming Group Names for Your Favorite Garden Animals

Humans have always taken notice of the wild animals around them, observing their personalities, moods, and tendencies to form social groups. Over time, these groupings have even acquired names, such as a flock of geese or a murder of crows.

While most of these animal group names reflect an animal's behavior or appearance, others are delightfully theatrical, with origins in medieval hunters, monks, and poets, says Deby Cassill, an integrative biologist and animal behavior expert at the University of South Florida.

Whether you're already familiar with these names or are learning them for the first time, these common group animal names highlight how creative the English language can be—and may even teach you something about your favorite backyard creatures along the way.

Why Animals Group Together

Animals gather in groups for practical reasons—primarily for protection from predators or for cooperative defense against invaders. "For example, deer form herds because many eyes detect danger better than two," Cassill says. "Bats cluster for warmth inside caves, trees, and bridges where thousands may huddle like living insulation. Rabbits gather near warrens because shared burrows provide escape tunnels from predators."

Sometimes groups form during migrations to save energy. "Canada geese fly in V-shaped flocks because each bird gains aerodynamic lift from the wingbeats ahead, reducing energy costs during migration," Cassill adds. "Starlings form enormous 'murmurations' partly to confuse hawks and falcons, creating swirling aerial clouds that behave almost like living smoke."

Even tiny garter snakes gather in communal winter dens where hundreds may pile together underground for warmth and moisture conservation. 

Why Some Animals Travel Alone

Other animals are solitary because their local environment provides hiding places such as sand or soil in which to burrow or bushes and trees among which to hide. "Solitary earthworms forage at night and burrow during the day to avoid heat and birds," Cassill says. "Solitary snakes only gather seasonally during hibernation or mating. Solitary lifestyles work best when camouflage or hiding is your primary defense strategy."

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Groups Names for Common Garden Animals

Here are the proper names of common animal groups you might find in your garden:

• Cauldron of bats: Medieval superstition linking bats with witches led humans observing their behavior to refer to their groups as cauldrons, says Cassill.
• Clowder of cats: A group of cats is a clowder or glaring. However, if they are feral cats, they are a destruction, Cassill says.
• Covey of quail: A group of bobwhite quail is called a covey. "The word covey originates from the Old French word couvée, meaning a brood or hatch of birds," says Steven Brewington, conservationist and owner of Windy Hill Farm and Preserve.
• Dole of turtles: There are some differences in group names among turtles. "The Eastern box turtle, for example, gathers in groups known as a dole, which is a rare archaic collective noun," says Cassill. "Meanwhile, snapping turtles form a bale, an Old English grouping term."
• Charm of hummingbirds: A group of hummingbirds is called a charm because of their enchanting appearance and behavior. Groups are also called a glitter or a shimmer, for obvious reasons.
• Kaleidoscope of butterflies: A group of butterflies is called a kaleidoscope because of the dazzling mix of colors and constantly shifting patterns created by their fluttering wings.
• Walk of snails: A group of snails is known as a walk, inspired by their famously slow, gliding movement across garden paths and leaves.
• Herd of deer: A group of deer is referred to by the familiar ancient livestock term "herd," explains Cassill.
• Labor of moles: A group of Eastern moles is known as a labor because of their constant digging, says Cassill.
• Chorus of frogs: Anyone who has heard frogs singing from all corners of a garden will understand the origin of this group name.
• Mischief of rats: A group of rats is called a mischief, a term that originates from a Medieval-era humorous term for troublesome rodents, says Cassill.
• Murder of crows: A murder of crows likely originated because crows were associated with battlefields, executions, and ominous folklore, says Cassill.
• Knot of snakes: The official names for a group of snakes are nest or knot, and for rattlesnakes, a rhumba. "I assume knot refers to how a group of snakes looks like a tangled rope, and rhumba is related to how rattlesnakes sound," says Melissa Amarello, executive director at Advocates for Snake Preservation.
• Parliament of owls: This collective noun was earned because owls' solemn expressions resembled elderly politicians debating in dark rooms, says Cassill.
• Passel of opossums: Virginia opossums in particular gather in passels, a Southern colloquial term for a small group, says Cassill.
• Loveliness of ladybugs: With their beneficial garden behavior, pretty red color, charming spots, and reputation for bringing good luck, it's no wonder a group of ladybugs is called a loveliness.
• Scurry of squirrels: Squirrels group in a scurry, a term that represents their frantic, darting movements.
• Skulk of foxes: A skulk of foxes captures their sneaky personalities, says Cassill.
• Surfeit of skunks: Striped skunks group as a surfeit, a joke implying "too much skunk," Cassill says.
• Warren of rabbits: A warren of rabbits refers to their network of interconnected burrows, explains Cassill.