dialect

From Middle French dialecte, from Latin dialectos, dialectus, from Ancient Greek διάλεκτος (diálektos, “conversation, the language of a country or a place or a nation, the local idiom which derives from a dominant language”), from διαλέγομαι (dialégomai, “I participate in a dialogue”), from διά (diá, “inter, through”) + λέγω (légō, “I speak”); by surface analysis, dia- + -lect.

der

A curious question, which has as yet attracted but little attention, is whether the notes of the same species of Bird are in all countries alike. From my own observation I am inclined to think that they are not, and that there exist "dialects," so to speak, of the song.

1896, Alfred Newton, A Dictionary of Birds, page 893:

(ornithology) A variant form of the vocalizations of a bird species restricted to a certain area or population.


accipiter

(ornithology) Any hawk of the genus Accipiter.

(ornithology) Any hawk formerly classified in the genus Accipiter, such as Tachyspiza and Astur.


accipitrine

en-adj

accipitrine (comparative more accipitrine, superlative most accipitrine)

more accipitrine (comparative)
most accipitrine (superlative)

* accipiter + -ine
* Compare French accipitrin

(ornithology) Like or belonging to the Accipitriformes; raptorial; hawklike.


IOC

(ornithology) Initialism of International Ornithological Committee (now known as International Ornithologists' Union)


red

en-noun

red (countable and uncountable, plural reds)

From Middle English red, from Old English rēad, from Proto-West Germanic *raud, from Proto-Germanic *raudaz from Proto-Indo-European *h₁rowdʰós, from the root *h₁rewdʰ-.
Cognates
See also West Frisian read, Low German root, rood, rot, rod, Dutch rood, German rot, Danish and Norwegian Bokmål rød, Norwegian Nynorsk raud; also Welsh rhudd, Latin ruber, rufus, Tocharian A rtär, Tocharian B ratre, Ancient Greek ἐρυθρός (eruthrós), Albanian pruth (“redhead”), Russian ру́дый (rúdyj) ("red", "redhaired"). Czech rudý, Lithuanian raúdas, Finnish rauta, Estonian raud, Serbo-Croatian riđ ("reddish", "red"), Avestan 𐬭𐬀𐬊𐬌𐬛𐬌𐬙𐬀 (raoidita), Sanskrit रुधिर (rudhirá, “red, bloody”).

sekobarbitaali

slang: secobarbital — see also secobarbital

(countable, informal, UK, birdwatching) A redshank.


pip

en-verb

pip (third-person singular simple present pips, present participle pipping, simple past and past participle pipped)

pips (present singular third-person)
pipping (participle present)
pipped (participle past)
pipped (past)

onomatopoeic

Imitative

(ornithology) To make the initial hole during the process of hatching from an egg.


tick

From Middle English *tik, tek, tyche (“light touch, tap”), from the verb (see Etymology 3 below). Compare Dutch tik (“a pat, tap”), Middle High German zic (“a slight touch”).

cog

There are few birders who have not had stringy ticks on their lists at some stage.

1980, Bill Oddie, Bill Oddie's Little Black Bird Book, page 76:

A twitcher's list is very democratic. Each bird counts as one tick. There are no extra points for beauty or rarity. The humble sparrow counts just as much as a Wedge-tailed Eagle or a Paradise Parrot.

2005, Sean Dooley, The Big Twitch, Sydney: Allen and Unwin, page 41:

(birdwatching) A bird seen (or heard) by a birdwatcher, for the first time that day, year, trip, etc., and thus added to a list of observed birds.

Saxicola rubetra
Saxicola rubetra#Translingual

(ornithology) A whinchat (Saxicola rubetra).


tick

en-verb

tick (third-person singular simple present ticks, present participle ticking, simple past and past participle ticked)

ticks (present singular third-person)
ticking (participle present)
ticked (participle past)
ticked (past)

From Middle English ticken, tiken, probably from Old English *ticcian (“to touch, tap”), from Proto-West Germanic *tikkōn (“to touch, tap”), cognate with German zecken (“to nudge, poke, jab”). Doublet of tig.

inh

(birdwatching, transitive) To add (a bird) to a list of birds that have been seen (or heard).


ostrich

ostriches (plural)
estridge (alternative)

/ˈɒs.tɹɪt͡ʃ/

/ˈɒs.tɹɪd͡ʒ/

/ˈɔs.tɹɪt͡ʃ/

/ˈɑs.tɹɪt͡ʃ/

/ˈɔs.tɹɪd͡ʒ/

/ˈɑs.tɹɪd͡ʒ/

From Middle English ostrich, ostriche, ostryche, ostrige, borrowed from Anglo-Norman ostrige and Old French ostruce, from Vulgar Latin *austruthio, from Latin avis (“bird”) + strūthiō (“ostrich”), from Ancient Greek στρουθίων (strouthíōn), or shortened from strūthiocamēlus, from Ancient Greek στρουθιοκάμηλος (strouthiokámēlos), from στρουθός (strouthós, “sparrow”) + κάμηλος (kámēlos, “camel”). Compare Spanish avestruz and Portuguese avestruz.

der

στρουθιοκάμηλος

(ornithology) A large flightless bird of the order Struthioniformes.

Could a Taff'ta ſcarf, a long Eſtridge vvhing, / A ſtiffe Iron Doublet, and a Brazeel Pole / Tempt thee from Cambrick ſheets, fine active Thighs, / From Caudles vvhere the precious Amber ſvvims?

1634 (first performance), William D’avenant [i.e., William Davenant], The Wits: A Comedie; […], published 1636; republished in Two Excellent Plays: […], London: […] G. Bedel, and T[homas] Collins, […], 1665, →OCLC, Act I, page 1:

The Ostrich hath a compounded name in Greek and Latin—Struthio-Camelus, borrowed from a bird and a beast, as being a feathered and biped animal, yet in some ways like a camel; somewhat in the long neck; somewhat in the foot; and, as some imagine, from a camel-like position in the part of generation.

a. 1683 (date written), Thomas Browne, “[Unpublished Papers.] On the Ostrich.”, in Simon Wilkin, editor, Sir Thomas Browne’s Works […], volume IV, London: William Pickering; Norwich, Norfolk: Josiah Fletcher, →OCLC, page 337:

"But is not this fortunate?" continued she, taking up a superb plume of white ostrich feathers, fastened by a small agraffe, enamelled so as to represent a bunch of violets; "this is just what you wanted for the velvet cap you are to wear at Madame de l'Hôpital's masked ball."

1834, L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], chapter II, in Francesca Carrara. […], volume II, London: Richard Bentley, […], (successor to Henry Colburn), →OCLC, page 17:

The San Juan market is Mexico City's most famous deli of exotic meats, where an adventurous shopper can hunt down hard-to-find critters such as ostrich, wild boar and crocodile.

2013 July 26, Nick Miroff, “Mexico gets a taste for eating insects […] ”, in The Guardian Weekly, volume 189, number 7, page 32:

Struthio camelus
Struthio camelus#Translingual

The most widespread species of the genus, known as the common ostrich (Struthio camelus).


ant

en-verb

ant (third-person singular simple present ants, present participle anting, simple past and past participle anted)

ants (present singular third-person)
anting (participle present)
anted (participle past)
anted (past)
ante (alternative)
ampte (alternative)

From Middle English ampte, amte, emete, amete, from Old English ǣmete (“ant”), from Proto-West Germanic *āmaitijā (literally “biting-thing, cutter”), from Proto-Germanic *ē- (“off, away”) + *maitaną (“to cut”), from Proto-Indo-European *meh₂y- (“to cut”). Cognate with Scots emmot (“ant”), dialectal Dutch emt, empt (“ant”), German Ameise and Emse (“ant”). See also emmet.

inh

Wild birds tend to ant and sunbathe most frequently during periods of high humidity, particularly right after heavy or prolonged rainfall in summer.

1974, Eloise Potter and Doris Hauser, “Relationship of anting and sunbathing to molting in wild birds”, in The Auk, volume 91, archived from the original on 2011-06-06, page 538:

(ornithology) To rub insects, especially ants, on one's body, perhaps to control parasites or clean feathers.


song

en-noun

song (countable and uncountable, plural songs)

→ Polish: song

From Middle English song, sang, from Old English sang, from Proto-West Germanic *sangu, from Proto-Germanic *sangwaz (“singing, song”), from Proto-Indo-European *sengʷʰ- (“to sing”). Cognate with Scots sang, song (“singing, song”), Saterland Frisian Song (“song”), West Frisian sang (“song”), Dutch zang (“song”), Low German sang (“song”), German Sang (“singing, song”), Swedish sång (“song”), Norwegian Bokmål sang (“song”), Norwegian Nynorsk song (“song”), Icelandic söngur (“song”), Ancient Greek ὀμφή (omphḗ, “voice, oracle”). More at sing.

cog

(ornithology) The distinctive sound that a male bird utters to attract a mate or to protect his territory; contrasts with call; also, similar vocalisations made by female birds.


sing

en-verb

sing (third-person singular simple present sings, present participle singing, simple past sang, past participle sung or (archaic) sungen)

sings (present singular third-person)
singing (participle present)
sang (past)
sung (participle past)
sungen (archaic participle past)
sing (infinitive)
sing (first-person present singular)
sang (first-person past singular)
sung (dialectal first-person past singular)
sing (present second-person singular)
singest (archaic present second-person singular)
sang (past second-person singular)
sung (dialectal past second-person singular)
sangest (archaic past second-person singular)
sungest (archaic past second-person singular)
sings (present singular third-person)
singeth (archaic present singular third-person)
sang (past singular third-person)
sung (dialectal past singular third-person)
sing (plural present)
sang (past plural)
sung (dialectal past plural)
sing (present subjunctive)
sang (past subjunctive)
sung (dialectal past subjunctive)
sing (imperative present)
singing (participle present)
sung (participle past)
sungen (archaic participle past)

From Middle English singen, from Old English singan, from Proto-West Germanic *singwan, from Proto-Germanic *singwaną, from Proto-Indo-European *sengʷʰ-. Cognate with German singen (“to sing”) and Danish synge (“to sing”).

listen/core

Recorded singing from a person.

(ornithology) To produce a 'song', for the purposes of defending a breeding territory or to attract a mate.


bran

From a Celtic source; compare Welsh brân and Cornish bran.

(ornithology) The European carrion crow.


have

en-verb

have (third-person singular simple present has, present participle having, simple past and past participle had)

has (present singular third-person)
having (participle present)
had (participle past)
had (past)
have (infinitive)
have (first-person present singular)
had (first-person past singular)
have (present second-person singular)
hast (archaic present second-person singular)
had (past second-person singular)
hadst (archaic past second-person singular)
has (present singular third-person)
have (dialectal present singular third-person)
hath (archaic present singular third-person)
had (past singular third-person)
have (plural present)
had (past plural)
have (present subjunctive)
had (past subjunctive)
have (imperative present)
having (participle present)
haveing (archaic participle present)
had (participle past)
haue (alternative alternative obsolete)
hae (alternative)

From Middle English haven, from Old English habban (“to have”), from Proto-West Germanic *habbjan, from Proto-Germanic *habjaną (“to have”), durative of *habjaną (“to lift, take up”), from Proto-Indo-European *kh₂pyéti, present tense of *keh₂p- (“to take, seize, catch”). Related to heave.
Since there is no common Indo-European root for a transitive possessive verb have (notice that Latin habeō is not etymologically related to English have), Proto-Indo-European probably lacked the have structure. Instead, the third person forms of be were used, with the possessor in dative case, compare Latin mihi est / sunt, literally to me is / are.
Cognates
Cognate with Saterland Frisian hääbe (“to have”), West Frisian hawwe (“to have”), Dutch hebben (“to have”), Afrikaans hê (“to have”), Low German hebben, hewwen (“to have”), German haben (“to have”), Danish have (“to have”), Swedish hava (“to have”), Norwegian Nynorsk ha (“to have”), Icelandic hafa (“to have”), Albanian kap (“I grab, catch, grip”), Latin capiō (“take”, verb), Russian хапать (xapatʹ, “to seize”).

we have always been at war with Eastasia

For some reason, "I had a Freckled Duck today" never seems to work as a pick-up line.

2005, Sean Dooley, The Big Twitch, Sydney: Allen and Unwin, page 57:

(transitive, birdwatching) To make an observation of (a bird species).


rode

rode (third-person singular simple present rodes, present participle roding, simple past and past participle roded)

rodes (present singular third-person)
roding (participle present)
roded (participle past)
roded (past)

"When the sun rises we shall have some splendid play. Only hear the woodcock, how he is roading; he expects fine weather."

1886, Peter Christen Asbjørnsen, translated by H.L. Brækstad, Folk and Fairy Tales, page 85:

(ornithology) Of a male woodcock, to fly back and forth over the edge of a woodland while calling; to perform its, typically crepuscular, mating flight.


string

string (third-person singular simple present strings, present participle stringing, simple past strung or (colloquial) stringed or strang, past participle strung or (colloquial) stringed)

strings (present singular third-person)
stringing (participle present)
strung (past)
stringed (colloquial past)
strang (past)
strung (participle past)
stringed (colloquial participle past)

From Middle English stryngen, strengen, from the noun (see above).

To be honest, you'd be better off trying to string a Skylark as a Richard's Pipit rather than as a Pectoral Sandpiper.

1980, Bill Oddie, Bill Oddie's Little Black Bird Book, page 81:

For instance he might see a White-eared Honeyeater, a not uncommon bird in the heathy areas at Bunyip, but in his excitement to call it, something in his brain scrambled and came out as: `White-cheeked Honeyeater!' White-cheeked Honeyeater is an absolute stonking crippler in Victoria, but Stu was not actually trying to string a rarity, he'd just got such a flood of new information swirling around his brain that sometimes it got jumbled up.

2005, Sean Dooley, The Big Twitch, Sydney: Allen and Unwin, page 67:

(birdwatching) To deliberately state that a certain bird is present when it is not; to knowingly mislead other birders about the occurrence of a bird, especially a rarity; to misidentify a common bird as a rare species.


partridge

en-noun

partridge (plural partridges or partridge)

/ˈpɑːtɹɪd͡ʒ/

/ˈpɑɹtɹɪd͡ʒ/

From Middle English partrich, partriche, pertriche, perdriz, from Old French perdriz, partriz, from Latin perdīx (“partridge”), from Ancient Greek πέρδιξ (pérdix, “partridge”), probably from πέρδομαι (pérdomai, “to fart”).

partridge-wood

Andira inermis; Millettia stuhlmannii; Stereum frustulosum

On the first day of Christmas, my true love sent to me a partridge in a pear tree.

...and the loudest sound in the lonely fields was when, adventuring too near some late brood, the partridge sought to deceive by a plaintive cry and seeming helplessness, crossing before your very feet, till, when drawn to a sufficient distance, suddenly the air vibrated to the flutter of her active pinions.

1834, L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], chapter XI, in Francesca Carrara. […], volume III, London: Richard Bentley, […], (successor to Henry Colburn), →OCLC, page 80:

(ornithology) Any bird of a number of genera in the family Phasianidae, notably in the genera Perdix and Alectoris.

thëllëzë

any bird of the genera Perdix or Alectoris

鷓鴣 /鹧鸪 (zhègū) (francolin, but often translated as partridge)


sand

(colloquial, birdwatching) Ellipsis of sandpiper.


mandarin

→ Irish: mandairín

From Portuguese mandarim, mandarij, from Malay menteri, manteri, and its source, Sanskrit मन्त्रिन् (mantrin, “minister, councillor”), from मन्त्र (mantra, “counsel, maxim, mantra”) + -इन् (-in, an agent suffix). In Chinese folk etymology, the word originates from Mandarin 滿大人 /满大人 (Mǎndàrén, literally “Manchu important man”).

com

(ornithology) Ellipsis of mandarin duck.


band

en-verb

band (third-person singular simple present bands, present participle banding, simple past and past participle banded)

bands (present singular third-person)
banding (participle present)
banded (participle past)
banded (past)

Inherited from Middle English band (also bond), from Old English beand, bænd, bend (“bond, chain, fetter, band, ribbon, ornament, chaplet, crown”), from Proto-Germanic *bandą, *bandiz (“band, fetter”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰendʰ- (“to tie, bind”). Middle English band reinforced by Old French bande. Cognate with Dutch band, German Band, Danish bånd, Swedish band, Icelandic band (“band”). Related to bond, bind, bend.

inh

(transitive, ornithology) To fasten an identifying band around the leg of (a bird).

rengastaa

ornithology: fasten an identifying band around the leg of


harem

en-noun

harem (countable and uncountable, plural harems)

harems (plural)
hareem (alternative dated)
harim (alternative dated)

Borrowed from Ottoman Turkish حرم (harem) Turkish harem, from Arabic حَرَم (ḥaram, “something prohibited; sanctuary, women”); and later also from حَرِيم (ḥarīm) with same meaning, both from حَرُمَ (ḥaruma, “be forbidden or unlawful”). Doublet of haram.

der

In the meantime we were hidden in a close juniper thicket on the little knoll, and expected the capercailzie cock every moment; but our old friend tarried a long time in his harem.

1886, Peter Christen Asbjørnsen, translated by H.L. Brækstad, Folk and Fairy Tales, page 90:

(ornithology) A group of female birds mated to or associated with a breeding male.


sarnie

sarnies (plural)
sarny (alternative)
sarney (alternative)

From sarn- (“perhaps from a dialectal pronunciation of the first syllable of sandwich”) + -ie. Alternatively, perhaps a misreading or an intentional dissimilation of samie (i.e. sammie), where the 'm' is mistaken for or replaced with 'rn'.

suffix

perhaps from a dialectal pronunciation of the first syllable of <i class="Latn mention" lang="en">sandwich</i>


eclipse

en-noun

eclipse (countable and uncountable, plural eclipses)

From Old French eclipse, from Latin eclīpsis, from Ancient Greek ἔκλειψις (ékleipsis, “eclipse”), from ἐκλείπω (ekleípō, “I abandon, go missing, vanish”), from ἐκ (ek, “out”) and λείπω (leípō, “I leave behind”). Doublet of eclipsis.

der

(ornithology) A seasonal state of plumage in some birds, notably ducks, adopted temporarily after the breeding season and characterised by a dull and scruffy appearance.


贕

Phono-semantic compound (形聲 /形声, OC *l'oːɡ): semantic 卵 (“egg”) + phonetic 𧶠 (OC *luɡ)

Han compound

(ornithology) stillborn chick in an unhatched egg


plastic

en-adj

plastic (comparative more plastic, superlative most plastic)

more plastic (comparative)
most plastic (superlative)
plastick (alternative)

From Latin plasticus (“of molding”), from Ancient Greek πλαστικός (plastikós), from πλάσσω (plássō, “to mold, form”). Doublet of plastique.

A superb — and apparently wild, not plastic — Baikal Teal was located at RSPB Greylake in Somerset[.]

2024 January 14, Ian Reid, “South Aussie birding on the other side of the world”, in The Feathered Variety (blog), archived from the original on 2024-01-14:

(informal, birdwatching, of an individual bird) Escaped from captivity, rather than wild.

I was checking into my motel while a Red-whiskered Bulbul called outside – a Queensland plastic rarity which was somewhat amusing.

2018 August 12, Corwin Caelin, “The bucket list – a Wallaby and a Wombat – part 1”, in Go Birding (blog), archived from the original on 2018-08-23:

(informal, birdwatching, of a species or individual bird) Introduced, rather than native or naturally vagrant.


primary

/ˈpɹaɪˌmɛɹi/

Borrowed from Latin prīmārius (“of the first (rank); chief, principal; excellent”), from prīmus (first; whence the English adjective prime) + -ārius (whence the English suffix -ary); compare the French primaire, primer, and premier. Doublet of premier.

bor+

`Good Lord, look at that swiftlet, it's got two primaries missing from its left wing!'

2005, Sean Dooley, The Big Twitch, Sydney: Allen and Unwin, page 115:

(ornithology) Any flight feather attached to the manus (hand) of a bird.


climber

From Middle English climber, clymber, clymbare (“one who climbs, climber”), from climben (“to climb; to ascend, fly upward, rise; to slope upwards; to approach God in prayer; to advance; to overcome, triumph; to aspire; to be presumptuous”) + -er, -ere (suffix forming agent nouns). The English word is analysable as climb (verb) + -er (suffix forming agent nouns).

af

Someone or something that climbs (such as a mountain climber).

(ornithology) A bird that climbs, such as a parrot or woodpecker; specifically (archaic), a bird having two toes pointing forward, and two pointing backward, formerly regarded as being from the order Scansores or Zygodactyli (now obsolete as the birds formerly in this order have been reclassified into different orders); a zygodactyl.


peep

From Middle English pepen. Compare Dutch piepen (“peep”), German Low German piepen (“to peep”), German piepen and pfeifen, all probably onomatopoeic.

(birdwatching, colloquial) A sandpiper or other small wader.


pirate

pirates (plural)
pyrate (alternative obsolete)

→ Niuean: pairēti

From Middle English pirate, pirat, pyrat, from Old French pirate, from Latin pīrāta (“pirate”), from Ancient Greek πειρατής (peiratḗs), from πεῖρα (peîra, “trial, attempt, plot”). Displaced native Old English wīċing, which was the word for both "pirate" and "viking".

(ornithology) A bird which practises kleptoparasitism.


vane

From Middle English vane, Southern Middle English variant of fane, from Old English fana (“cloth, banner, flag”), from Proto-West Germanic *fanō, from Proto-Germanic *fanô, from Proto-Indo-European *peh₂n- (“something woven; weave; tissue; fabric; cloth”).
Cognate with Saterland Frisian Foone (“flag, banner”), Dutch vaan (“banner, flag”), German Low German Fahn (“flag”), German Fahne. Doublet of obsolete fane (“weathercock; banner”) and fanon.

cog

Meronym: barb

(ornithology) The flattened, web-like part of a feather, consisting of a series of barbs on either side of the shaft.

bandera

ornithology: flattened web-like part of a feather


lire

From Old Norse líri. Cognate with Norwegian lira.

(UK dialectal, Scotland, Orkney, Shetland, ornithology) The Manx shearwater (bird).


scold

en-verb

scold (third-person singular simple present scolds, present participle scolding, simple past and past participle scolded)

scolds (present singular third-person)
scolding (participle present)
scolded (participle past)
scolded (past)

The noun is from Middle English scold(e), skald(e), first attested in the 12th or 13th century (as scold, scolde, skolde, skald). The verb is from Middle English scolden, first attested in the late 1300s. Most dictionaries derive the verb from the noun and say the noun is probably from Old Norse skald (“poet”) (cognate with Icelandic skáld (“poet, scop”)), as skalds sometimes wrote insulting poems, though another view is that the Norse and English words are cognate to each other and to Old High German skeltan, Old Dutch skeldan, all inherited from Proto-Germanic *skeldaną (“scold”).

(ornithology) Of birds, to make harsh vocalisations in aggression.


ptak

ptak (nominative singular)
ptakaj (dual nominative)
ptaki (nominative plural)
ptaka (genitive singular)
ptakow (dual genitive)
ptakow (genitive plural)
ptakej (dative singular)
ptakomaj (dative dual)
ptakam (dative plural)
ptaka (accusative singular)
ptakaj (accusative dual)
ptaki (accusative plural)
ptakom (instrumental singular)
ptakomaj (dual instrumental)
ptakami (instrumental plural)
ptaku (locative singular)
ptakomaj (dual locative)
ptakach (locative plural)
ptako (singular vocative)
ptakaj (dual vocative)
ptaki (plural vocative)

(ornithology) bird (any bird belonging to the order of birds)


axial

(ornithology) A flight feather that appears between the primaries and secondaries on some birds.


nutcracker

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-nutcracker.wav

(ornithology) Any bird of the genus Nucifraga in the crow family.


birdsong

en-noun

birdsong (countable and uncountable, plural birdsongs)

birdsongs (plural)
bird song (alternative)

(ornithology) A vocalisation made by a bird, more complex than a call, for purposes associated with courtship and territory.


barb

PIE word
 *bʰardʰéh₂
From Middle English barbe, from Middle French barbe, from Old French barbe (“beard, beard-like element”). Doublet of beard.

der

(ornithology) One of the many side branches of a feather, which collectively constitute the vane.


kettle

→ Brunei Malay: kitil

→ Persian: کتری (ketri)

→ Bengali: কেটলি (keṭli)

→ Hindi: केतली (ketlī)

→ Gujarati: કીટલી (kīṭlī)

→ Irish: citeal

→ Maltese: kitla

→ Zulu: igedlela

From Middle English ketel, also chetel, from Old English ċietel (“kettle, cauldron”) and in Middle English possibly influenced by Old Norse ketill and both from Proto-Germanic *katilaz (“kettle, bucket, vessel”), of uncertain origin and formation. Usually regarded as a borrowing of Late Latin catīllus (“small bowl”), diminutive of Latin catinus (“deep bowl, vessel for cooking up or serving food”), however, the word may be Germanic confused with the Latin: compare Old English cete (“cooking pot”), Old High German chezzi (“a kettle, dish, bowl”), Icelandic kati, ketla (“a small boat”). Cognate with West Frisian tsjettel (“kettle”), Dutch ketel (“kettle”), German Kessel (“kettle”), Swedish kittel (“cauldron”), Swedish kittel (“kettle”), Gothic 𐌺𐌰𐍄𐌹𐌻𐍃 (katils, “kettle”), Finnish kattila, Polish kocioł (“cauldron”), Czech kotel (“boiler”), Russian котёл (kotjól, “boiler, cauldron”).
(watch): Cockney rhyming slang from 'kettle and hob' to 'fob' (fob watch).

cog

a kettle of hawks

Kettles can consist of thousands of birds migrating together.

2010, Jean-Luc E. Cartron, Raptors of New Mexico:

(ornithology, collective) A group of raptors riding a thermal, especially when migrating.


wreck

From Middle English wrek, from Anglo-Norman wrek, from Old Norse *wrek (Norwegian and Icelandic rek, Swedish vrak, Danish vrag), from Proto-Germanic *wrekaną, whence also Old English wrecan (English wreak), Old High German rehhan, Old Saxon wrekan, Gothic 𐍅𐍂𐌹𐌺𐌰𐌽 (wrikan).

[I]n 1952 more than 7,000 were involved in such a "wreck" in Britain and Ireland.

1988, Michael Cady, Rob Hume, editors, The Complete Book of British Birds, page 89:

(ornithology) A large number of birds that have been brought to the ground, injured or dead, by extremely adverse weather.


hooper

Cygnus cygnus
Cygnus cygnus#Translingual

(ornithology) The European whistling, or wild, swan (Cygnus cygnus).


lister

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-lister.wav

(birdwatching) A birdwatcher who keeps track of birds using different checklists.


ruff

Clipping of ruffle, or possibly from rough.

I ſhall call this bird the painted vulture. […] the head and neck bare of feathers nearly down to the ſtomach, when the feathers begin to cover the ſkin, and ſoon become long and of a ſoft texture, forming a ruff or tippet, in which the bird by contracting his neck can hide that as well as his head: […]

1794, William Bartram, chapter V, in Travels through North and South Carolina, Georgia, East and West Florida, the Cherokee Country, the Extensive Territories of the Muscogulges or Creek Confederacy, and the Country of the Chactaws. Containing an Account of the Soil and Natural Productions of those Regions; together with Observations on the Manners of the Indians. Embellished with Copper-plates, 2nd London edition, Philadelphia, Pa.: Printed by James and Johnson; London: Reprinted for J. Johnson, in St. Paul's Church-yard, →OCLC, pages 148–149:

In the ruffed grouse, the special "ruff" feathers are borne on the lateral branches of the lower cervical feather tract.

2016, Paul A[ustin] Johnsgard, “Introduction to the North American Grouse”, in The North American Grouse: Their Biology and Behavior, Lincoln, Neb.: Zea Books, →ISBN, page 9, column 1:

(ornithology) A set of lengthened or otherwise modified feathers on or around the neck of a bird.

höyhenkaulus

set of feathers on or around the neck of a bird


winker

From wink (“blinking of only one eye”) + -er (suffix forming agent nouns).

silmäniskijä

There is a third inner eyelid, highly developed and of beautiful mechanism: this is the nictitating membrane, or "winker" (nictito, I wink), a delicate, elastic, translucent, pearly-white fold of the conjunctiva. While the other lids move vertically and have a horizontal commissure, the winker sweeps horizontally or obliquely across the ball, from the side next the beak to the opposite.

1884, Elliott Coues, “§ 4.—An Introduction to the Anatomy of Birds.”, in Key to North American Birds. […], 2nd edition, Boston, Mass.: Estes and Lauriat, →OCLC, part II (General Ornithology), page 180:

nictitating membrane
nictitating membrane#English

A thing which is used to wink with, or which winks.

(ornithology) The nictitating membrane (“transparent protective fold of skin acting as an inner eyelid”) of a birds's eye.


court

→ Bulgarian: корт (kort)

→ French: court

desctree

→ Russian: корт (kort)
→ Armenian: կորտ (kort)

non-rhotic, without the horse–hoarse merger

caught (non-rhotic, horse–hoarse merger)

From Middle English court, from Old French cort, curt, from Latin cōrtem (accusative of cōrs), ultimately from cohors. Doublet of cohort.

مَلْعَب

place for playing the game of tennis and some other ball games

The male Wilson's bird of paradise clears an area of rainforest to create a court in which to perform an elaborate mating dance.

(ornithology) A space prepared and decorated by certain bird species in which to advertise themselves for a mate.


secondary

From Middle English secundarie, from Latin secundārius (“of the second class or quality”), from secundus (whence the English second) + -ārius (whence the English suffix -ary), equivalent to second + -ary; compare the French secondaire, the Italian secondario, the Occitan secundari, the Portuguese secundario, and the Spanish secundario.

der

English numerals#Ordinal numbers
secondary

(ornithology) Any flight feather attached to the ulna (forearm) of a bird.


pec

Greenshank, dunlins, common sand, snipe and blackwits accompanied the pec.

2016 August 1, Trevor Lee, “Another pec.”, in Lincsbirders (blog), archived from the original on 2025-01-01:

I went back into my photos, and yes, on 13 Nov, I photographed both Sharpie and the Pec.

2019 November 21, Stan Jarzynski, “Possible Pectoral Sandpiper”, in canberrabirds mailing list:

pectoral sandpiper
pectoral sandpiper#English

(birdwatching) Clipping of pectoral sandpiper.


plague

en-noun

plague (countable and uncountable, plural plagues)

From Middle English plage, borrowed from Old French plage, from Latin plāga (“blow, wound”), from plangō (“to strike”). Cognate with Middle Dutch plāghe (> Dutch plaag), plāghen (> Dutch plagen); Middle Low German plāge; Middle High German plāge, pflāge (> German Plage); plāgen (> German plagen); Swedish plåga; French plaie, Occitan plaga. Doublet of plaga. Displaced native Old English wōl.

(ornithology) A group of common grackles.


dip

dip (countable and uncountable, plural dips)

From Middle English dippen, from Old English dyppan, from Proto-West Germanic *duppjan, from Proto-Germanic *dupjaną; see *daupijaną (“to dip”). Related to deep.

I'd missed them by a couple of hours. This dip did not bode well for the Hudwit.

2005, Sean Dooley, The Big Twitch, Sydney: Allen and Unwin, page 124:

(birdwatching, colloquial) The act of missing out on seeing a sought after bird.


dip

en-verb

dip (third-person singular simple present dips, present participle dipping, simple past and past participle dipped)

dips (present singular third-person)
dipping (participle present)
dipped (participle past)
dipped (past)

dip me in chocolate and throw me to the lesbians

dip me in honey and throw me to the lesbians

I assured him that I'd been birding long enough to know that there were no guarantees with birds and I wouldn't have held it against him if I'd dipped.

(birdwatching, colloquial) To miss out on seeing a sought after bird.


drongo

Borrowed from French drongo, from Malagasy.

(ornithology) drongo (any bird of the Dicruridae family), particularly the fork-tailed drongo (Dicrurus adsimilis)


shank

From Middle English schanke, from Old English sċanca (“leg”), from Proto-West Germanic *skankō, from Proto-Germanic *skankô (compare West Frisian skonk, Dutch schenkel, Low German Schanke, German Schenkel (“shank, leg”), Danish skank, Norwegian skank, Swedish skänkel), from *skankaz (compare Old Norse skakkr (“wry, crooked”)), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)keng- (compare Middle Irish scingim (“I spring”), Ancient Greek σκάζω (skázō, “to limp”).

(ornithology, colloquial) A redshank or greenshank, various species of Old World wading birds in the genus Tringa having distinctly colored legs.


tertiary

/ˈtɜː.ʃə.ɹiː/

/ˈtɜː.ʃə.ɹiː/

English numerals#Ordinal numbers
Peterhouse, Cambridge
University of Cambridge

PIE word
 *tréyes
Borrowed from the Latin tertiārius (“of the third part or rank”), from tertius (“third”) (from Proto-Indo-European *tr̥tyós, whence English third) + -ārius (whence the English suffix -ary); compare the French tertiaire.

bor

The primary, secondary, and tertiary wing feathers (remiges) of adult mourning doves are shed and replaced yearly in an orderly sequence, so flight is possible during molt. […] Little is known about the shedding sequence of the secondary or tertiary feathers or the related coverts. If it is similar to that of passerines, however, loss of the outermost tertiary feather occurs coincident with loss of the fifth or sixth primary[…]. The molt then would continue sequentially until the last or innermost tertiary was shed and replaced.

1993, Ralph E. Mirarchi, “Growth, Maturation, and Molt”, in Thomas S. Baskett, Mark W. Sayre, Roy E. Tomlinson, Ralph E. Mirarchi, editors, Ecology and Management of the Mourning Dove (Wildlife Management Institute Book), Harrisburg, Pa.: Stackpole Books, →ISBN, page 141:

(ornithology) Of quills: growing on the innermost joint of a bird's wing; tertial.


tertiary

English numerals#Ordinal numbers
Lay Carmelites
Peterhouse, Cambridge
Saint-Étienne Cathedral
University of Cambridge

/ˈtɜː.ʃə.ɹiː/

/ˈtɜː.ʃə.ɹiː/

The feathers [of the least sandpiper (Calidris minutilla)], black centrally, are margined with bright rufous, especially on the back, scapulars, and tertiaries, and with white tips on the latter; the stripes on the middle of the throat and chest are indistinct or almost absent, more evident on sides of breast.

1955, Thomas S. Roberts, “Key to Shore Birds”, in Manual for the Identification of the Birds of Minnesota and Neighboring States, rev. edition, Minneapolis, Minn.: University of Minnesota Press, published 1980, →OCLC, page 583:

Coincident with the dropping out of the fifth or sixth primary is the molt of the outermost tertiary, followed by the adjoining tertiary, and then the third tertiary, which in most passerine birds is the last or innermost.

1956, Olin Sewall Pettingill, [Jr.], A Laboratory and Field Manual of Ornithology, 3rd rev. edition, Minneapolis, Minn.: Burgess Publishing Company, →OCLC, page 142:

(ornithology) A tertiary feather; a tertial.


vagrant

From Late Middle English vagraunt (“person without proper employment; person without a fixed abode, tramp, vagabond”) [and other forms], probably from Anglo-Norman vagarant, wakerant, waucrant (“vagrant”) [and other forms] and Old French walcrant, waucrant (“roaming, wandering”) [and other forms], perhaps influenced by Latin vagārī, the present active infinitive of vagor (“to ramble, stroll about; to roam, rove, wander”). Old French walcrant is the present participle of vagrer, wacrer, walcrer (“to wander, wander about as a vagabond”) [and other forms], from Frankish *walkrōn (“to wander about”), the frequentative form of *walkōn (“to walk; to wander; to stomp, trample; to full (make cloth denser and firmer by soaking, beating and pressing)”), from Proto-Germanic *walkōną (“to roll about, wallow; to full”), *walkaną (“to turn, wind; to toss; to roll, roll about; to wend; to walk; to wander; to trample; to full”),
from Proto-Indo-European *walg-, *walk-, *welgʰ-, *welk-, *wolg- (“to turn, twist; to move”), ultimately from *welH- (“to turn; to wind”).
The English word is cognate with Latin valgus (“bandy-legged, bow-legged”), Middle Dutch walken (“to knead; to full”), Old English wealcan (“to roll”), ġewealcan (“to go; to walk about”), Old High German walchan, walkan (“to move up and down; to press together; to full; to walk; to wander”), Old Norse valka (“to wander”). See further at walk.

cog

LL-Q1860 (eng)-I learned some phrases-vagrant.wav

(biology, especially ornithology) An animal, typically a bird, found outside its species' usual range.

迷鳥 /迷鸟

animal found outside its species’ usual range


scope

en-verb

scope (third-person singular simple present scopes, present participle scoping, simple past and past participle scoped)

scopes (present singular third-person)
scoping (participle present)
scoped (participle past)
scoped (past)

From Italian scopo (“purpose”), from Latin scopus (“target”), from Ancient Greek σκοπός (skopós), from σκέπτομαι (sképtomai), from Proto-Indo-European *speḱ-. Etymologically related to skeptic and spectrum.

`Maybe there was another darker bird and it had flown away before we could scope it?' `Yes there must have been,' came the grim-faced reply.

2005, Sean Dooley, The Big Twitch, Sydney: Allen and Unwin, page 199:

(birdwatching, informal) To observe a bird using a spotting scope.


plumage

en-noun

plumage (countable and uncountable, plural plumages)

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Naomi Persephone Amethyst (NaomiAmethyst)-plumage.wav

From Old French plumage (14c.), itself from plume (“feather”) (from Latin plūma (“feather, down”), from a Proto-Indo-European base *plews- (“to pluck, a feather, fleece”) + -age.

Somewhat like a heron she was, but stouter, and shorter of leg, and her beak shorter and thicker than the heron’s; and so long and delicate was her pale gray plumage that hard it was to say whether it were hair or feathers.

1922, E[ric] R[ücker] Eddison, The Worm Ouroboros: A Romance, London: Jonathan Cape […], →OCLC, page 33:

[Owner]: No no he's not dead, he's, he's restin'! Remarkable bird, the Norwegian Blue, idn'it, ay? Beautiful plumage!
[Mr. Praline]: The plumage don't enter into it. It's stone dead.

1969, Monty Python, “Monty Python’s Flying Circus”, in Dead Parrot sketch:

(ornithology, collective noun) Layer or collection of feathers covering a bird’s body; feathers used ornamentally; feathering.


plumage

(ornithology, collective noun) plumage (a bird's feathers, collectively speaking)


covert

From Middle English covert, from Old French covert, past participle of covrir (“to cover”) (corresponding to Latin coopertus); cognate to cover. Unrelated to overt, despite what the most common pronunciation would suggest.

When he felt the trappings being taken off him, so that he was in hunting order, Cully did make some movements as if to rouse. He raised his crest, his shoulder coverts and the soft feathers of his thighs.

1958, T[erence] H[anbury] White, chapter I, in The Once and Future King, New York, N.Y.: G. P. Putnam's Sons, →ISBN, book I (The Sword in the Stone):

(ornithology) A feather that covers the bases of flight feathers.


twitch

twitch (countable and uncountable, plural twitches)

From Middle English twicchen, from Old English *twiċċan, from Proto-West Germanic *twikkijan (“to nail, pin, fasten, clasp, pinch”).
Cognate with English tweak, Low German twikken, German Low German twicken (“to pinch, pinch off”), zweckōn and gizwickan (> German zwicken (“to pinch”)).

cog

(birdwatching) A trip taken in order to observe a rare bird.


jizz

en-noun

jizz (usually uncountable, plural jizzes)

The earliest known appearance in print dates from 1922, in Thomas Coward's "Country Diary" column for the Manchester Guardian of 6 December 1921; the piece was subsequently included in his 1922 book Bird Haunts and Nature Memories. He attributed it to "a west-coast Irishman", and explained:
:if we are walking on the road and see, far ahead, someone whom we recognise although we can neither distinguish features nor particular clothes, we may be certain that we are not mistaken; there is something in the carriage, the walk, the general appearance which is familiar; it is, in fact, the individual's jizz.
There are several theories as to the etymology of “jizz”:
* From the military term GIS (“general impression and shape”).
* Possible contraction of just is (in the sense that a particular bird species “just is” that species).
An essay by Greenwood and Greenwood in 2018 debunks these theories. Other suggestions include variants of guise, gist and gestalt (mispronounced).

A West Coast Irishman was familiar with the wild creatures which dwelt on or visited his rocks and shores; at a glance he could name them, usually correctly, but if asked how he knew them would reply ‘By their "jizz".’

1922, TA Coward, Bird Haunts and Nature Memories, London: Warne:

Political cartoonists rely a lot on jizz. When a new president or prime minister comes into office it usually takes the cartoonists a little while to decide which features to select as field marks but they then stylise these in ways that make them instantly recognisable to the rest of us, even though they may be grossly exaggerated.

2009, Jeremy Mynott, chapter 3, in Birdscapes, Princeton and Oxford: Princeton, page 74:

His birds are not carefully posed to illustrate every plumage detail; they are impressions rather than portraits. With a few deft strokes of his pencil, he captures their 'jizz'.

2015, Nick Davies, chapter 3, in Cuckoo - Cheating by Nature (paperback), London: Bloomsbury, page 53:

(ornithology, birdwatching) The physical and behavioural characteristics of a bird that enable it to be immediately recognised by an experienced birder as a certain type of bird, especially to family or genus level.


graduated

(ornithology) Of a tail, having successively longer feathers towards the middle.


lunette

→ Portuguese: luneta


bander

He got a banding permit in the early 30s and was an active bander for the rest of his life.

1993 November 26, Jerry Sullivan, “Field & Street”, in Chicago Reader:


oology

/əʊˈɒləd͡ʒi/

LL-Q1860_(eng)-I learned some phrases-oology.wav

From oo- (prefix meaning ‘relating to eggs or ova’) + -logy (suffix indicating a branch of learning or study of a subject). The word is cognate with French oologie, Late Latin oologia.

confix

Yet it is not difficult to see that Oölogy promises to become an important auxiliary both in aiding to determine natural divisions, and to enable us to decide in regard to varieties the specific identity of which is in doubt. Let us take an instance. [...] Without looking at all to the external structure of these birds, Oölogy would seem to indicate that the Cat-Bird, though closely allied to the true Mocking-Bird, is at least one step, and that the Brown Thrush is even farther, removed.

1857, Thomas M[ayo] Brewer, “Introduction”, in North American Oölogy (Smithsonian Contributions to Knowledge; XI), part I (Raptores and Fissirostres), Washington, D.C.: Published by the Smithsonian Institution, published 1859, →OCLC, page vi:

Now here is just one of those cases, which bring the study of Oology, and very justly, into more discredit than any other thing. M. [Alfred] Moquin-Tandon's egg is very likely that of a Booted Eagle; but where is the proof of the fact? Absolutely, as we read it, there is none. [...] There are many collectors in this country, who yearly spend large sums in buying eggs from dealers—utterly un-identified, or with (since identification of eggs has lately become somewhat fashionable) a plausible history, but one that will not bear investigation.

1858 December, “IX. Review of Mr. [C. R.] Brees ‘Birds of Europe Not Observed in the British Isles.’”, in Philip Lutley Sclater, editor, The Ibis, a Magazine of General Ornithology, volume I, number I, London: N[icholas] Trübner and Co., […], published January 1859, →ISSN, →OCLC, pages 96–97:

A short sketch, such as Mr. [Cholmondeley] Pennell's, of the economy of the Bird, would be a most valuable addition to our ordinary ornithologies and oologies. He said oologies, for even in the egg of the bird the special needs of the forthcoming bird seemed to be more especially provided for than in the eggs of other families much higher in the scale.

[1864 February, [George] Rolleston, “Meeting of British Association. [Physiology.]”, in David A. P. Watt, editor, The Canadian Naturalist and Geologist: A Bi-monthly Journal of Natural Science […], volume I (Second Series), Montreal, Que.: Dawson Brothers, […], →OCLC, page 76:

When we come to examine the oölogy of the great Columbo-gallinaceous group, one well represented in the avifauna of the United States, it is possible to make the comparisons quite extensive, owing to [Charles] Bendire's exhaustive labors, as seen in his fine quarto volume already spoken of at the beginning of this paper.

1893, R[obert] W[ilson] Shufeldt, “Comparative Oölogy of North American Birds”, in Annual Report of the Board of Regents of the Smithsonian Institution, Showing the Operations, Expenditures, and Condition of the Institution for the Year Ending June 30, 1892: Report of the U.S. National Museum (The Miscellaneous Documents of the House of Representatives for the Second Session of the Fifty-second Congress; Mis. Doc. 114, part 2), Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, →OCLC, page 473:

The philosophy behind this meeting was to bring together scientists who specialised in the incubation and physiology of avian embryos with those workers interested in reptilian eggs and embryos. Leading authorities within many fields of incubation, oology and embryology were invited to give a presentation reviewing current knowledge within their sphere of research.

1991, D. Charles Deeming, Mark W. J. Ferguson, editors, Egg Incubation: Its Effects on Embryonic Development in Birds and Reptiles, Cambridge, Cambridgeshire: Cambridge University Press, →ISBN, page ix:


direct flight

(ornithology) A flight where the bird's altitude does not change significantly with each wingbeat.


furcula

(ornithology) The forked bone formed by the fusion of the clavicles in birds, the wishbone or merrythought.

（鳥的）鎖骨

forked bone in birds — see also wishbone


bidden

bidden (infinitive)
bidden (gerund neuter)
bid (first-person present singular)
bad (first-person past singular)
bidt (present second-person singular)
bid (present second-person singular)
bad (past second-person singular)
bidt (formal present second-person singular)
bad (formal past second-person singular)
bidt (Flanders colloquial present second-person singular)
bidt (archaic formal majestic present second-person singular)
baadt (Flanders colloquial past second-person singular)
baadt (archaic formal majestic past second-person singular)
bidt (present singular third-person)
bad (past singular third-person)
bidden (plural present)
baden (past plural)
bidde (archaic present singular subjunctive)
bade (archaic past singular subjunctive)
bidden (archaic plural present subjunctive)
baden (archaic past plural subjunctive)
bid (imperative present singular)
bidt (archaic imperative plural present)
biddend (participle present)
gebeden (participle past)

Afrikaans: bid

Negerhollands: bed, bet, bit

From Middle Dutch bidden, from Old Dutch bidden, from Proto-West Germanic *biddjan, from Proto-Germanic *bidjaną (“to ask”), from Proto-Indo-European *gʷʰédʰyeti.

De torenvalk speurde biddend naar zijn prooi.

The kestrel sought his prey while hovering.

(intransitive, ornithology, birdwatching) to hover (of birds), to use wings to remain in the same place in mid-air


bower

bowers (plural)
bowre (alternative obsolete)

From Middle English bour, from Old English būr, from Proto-West Germanic *būr, from Proto-Germanic *būrą (“room, abode”). Cognate with Saterland Frisian Búur (“storage room, utility room; cage”), German Bauer (“birdcage”), Old Norse búr (“cage”) (Danish bur, Norwegian Bokmål bur, Swedish bur).

cog

(ornithology) A large structure made of grass, twigs, etc., and decorated with bright objects, used by male bower birds during courtship displays.

беседка

(ornithology) A large structure made of grass and bright objects


cinereous

en-adj

cinereous (comparative more cinereous, superlative most cinereous)

more cinereous (comparative)
most cinereous (superlative)

Latin cinereus, from cinis, cineris (“ashes”).

cinereous:

With a bill two inches and a half long , very ſlender , and a little recurvated : head , and upper part of neck , cinereous , with dusky lines : over each eye a white line

Coluber cinereus, the cinereous viper; a native cf South America and India; of a cinereous grey colour; the abdomen white, angulated ; the scales of the tail ferruginous at the edges.

1810, Encyclopaedia Londinensis, or, Universal dictionary of arts, sciences, and literature, Volume 4:

Wings tailed, white, with a brown border; beneath varied with ferruginous and yellow, the lower ones with two cinereous streaks.

1819, Abraham Rees, The Cyclopædia: Or, Universal Dictionary of Arts, Sciences, and Literature, Volume 26:

[…] breast and front of the neck cinereous brown; belly, vent, and under tail-coverts, pure white […]

2014, Leonard Jenyns, A Manual of British Vertebrate Animals:

(chiefly ornithology) Of an ash-gray colour.


Slav

From Middle English sclave, borrowed from Medieval Latin Sclavus, from Byzantine Greek Σκλάβος (Sklábos); see that entry for more. Doublet of slave and ciao. Displaced native Old English Wined.

(British, birdwatching) The Slavonian grebe.


ticker

(birdwatching, slang) A birdwatcher who aims to see (and tick off on a list) as many bird species as possible.


piracy

en-noun

piracy (countable and uncountable, plural piracies)

piracies (plural)
pyracy (alternative obsolete)

From Medieval Latin pīrātia, from Classical Latin pīrāta + ia, or Ancient Greek πειρατεία (peirateía).


Flucht

de-noun

Flucht f (genitive Flucht, plural Fluchten)

Flucht (genitive)
Fluchten (plural)
Flucht (nominative singular)
Fluchten (definite nominative plural)
Flucht (genitive singular)
Fluchten (definite genitive plural)
Flucht (dative singular)
Fluchten (dative definite plural)
Flucht (accusative singular)
Fluchten (accusative definite plural)

From Middle Low German vlucht, from Old Saxon fluht, from Proto-West Germanic *fluhti (“flying”). Pertaining to fliegen (“to fly”).


rasorial

en-adj

rasorial (comparative more rasorial, superlative most rasorial)

more rasorial (comparative)
most rasorial (superlative)

/ɹəˈsɔːɹɪəl/

From Rasores, the obsolete taxonomic order of birds including chickens and other poultry, and + -ial.

(ornithology, historical) Pertaining to the now obsolete order Rasores.


Fahne

de-noun

Fahne f (genitive Fahne, plural Fahnen, diminutive Fähnchen n or Fähnlein n)

Fahne (genitive)
Fahnen (plural)
Fähnchen (diminutive neuter)
Fähnlein (diminutive neuter)
Fahne (nominative singular)
Fahnen (definite nominative plural)
Fahne (genitive singular)
Fahnen (definite genitive plural)
Fahne (dative singular)
Fahnen (dative definite plural)
Fahne (accusative singular)
Fahnen (accusative definite plural)

→ Silesian: fana

From Middle High German van(e) m, from Old High German fano, from Proto-West Germanic *fanō, from Proto-Germanic *fanô (“cloth, flag”), from Proto-Indo-European *pān- (“fabric”).
The shift to the feminine gender began in cognate Middle Low German vāne and, through Central German, established itself in the written language by the end of the 17th century.

(ornithology) vane (flattened, web-like part of a feather)


stringer

[T]hose fellows know how to spot a stringer at work.

1980, Bill Oddie, Bill Oddie's Little Black Bird Book, page 82:

(birdwatching) A person who deliberately states that a certain bird is present when it is not; one who knowingly misleads other birders about the occurrence of a bird, especially a rarity.


miri

(ornithology) a type of parrot found in Amazonia


cacique

caciques (plural)
cazic (alternative)
cazique (alternative)

Borrowed from Spanish cacique, from Taíno *kasike or Lokono kassequa, cazaqah (“chieftain; power”).

(ornithology) Any of a number of tropical birds from Central America and South America in the genera Cacicus, Cassiculus, and Amblycercus.


cacique

es-noun

cacique m (plural caciques, feminine cacique or cacica, feminine plural caciques or cacicas)

caciques (plural)
cacique (feminine)
cacica (feminine)
caciques (feminine plural)
cacicas (feminine plural)

→ Catalan: cacic

→ English: cacique

→ French: cacique

→ Galician: cacique

→ German: Kazike

→ Portuguese: cacique

Borrowed from Taíno *kasike (“chieftain”) or Lokono kassequa (“chieftain; power”).


Würger

de-noun

Würger m (strong, genitive Würgers, plural Würger)

Würgers (genitive)
Würger (plural)
Würger (nominative singular)
Würger (definite nominative plural)
Würgers (genitive singular)
Würger (definite genitive plural)
Würger (dative singular)
Würgern (dative definite plural)
Würger (accusative singular)
Würger (accusative definite plural)


grenadier

From French grenadier, corresponding to grenade + -ier.

(ornithology) Any of various African weaverbirds or waxbills, especially the common grenadier or the red bishop.


mantle

From Middle English mantel, from Old English mæntel, mentel (“sleeveless cloak”), from Proto-West Germanic *mantel; later reinforced by Anglo-Norman mantel, both from Latin mantēllum (“covering, cloak”), diminutive of mantum (French manteau, Spanish manto), probably from Gaulish *mantos, *mantalos (“trodden road”), from Proto-Celtic *mantos, *mantlos, from Proto-Indo-European *menH- (“tread, press together; crumble”). Compare Icelandic möttull. Doublet of manteau.

der

(ornithology) The back of a bird together with the folded wings.


gen

I had some recent gen that they had been seen quite recently at Kunoth Well, a little dot on the map on the edge of the Tanami Desert.

2005, Sean Dooley, The Big Twitch, Sydney: Allen and Unwin, page 172:

(birdwatching) Information about the location of a bird.


vexillum

Borrowed from Latin vēxillum (“flag, banner”).

(ornithology) The rhachis and web of a feather taken together.


zygodactyl

(ornithology) Any bird with toes of this kind, such as the parrot.


speculum

(ornithology) A bright, lustrous patch of colour found on the wings of ducks and some other birds, usually situated on the distal portions of the secondary quills, and much more brilliant in the adult male than in the female.


barba

From Old Galician-Portuguese barba, from Latin barba.


wood grouse

en-noun

wood grouse (plural wood grouses or wood grouse)

wood grouses (plural)
wood grouse (plural)

Tetrao urogallus
Tetrao urogallus#Translingual

(ornithology) The capercaillie, Tetrao urogallus.


płaszcz

płaszczyk (diminutive)
płaszcz (nominative singular)
płaszcze (nominative plural)
płaszcza (genitive singular)
płaszczy (genitive plural)
płaszczów (genitive plural)
płaszczowi (dative singular)
płaszczom (dative plural)
płaszcz (accusative singular)
płaszcze (accusative plural)
płaszczem (instrumental singular)
płaszczami (instrumental plural)
płaszczu (locative singular)
płaszczach (locative plural)
płaszczu (singular vocative)
płaszcze (plural vocative)
płoszcz (alternative)


scapular

From Middle English scapelar, from Latin scapulāre, from Latin scapula (“shoulder”). Compare scapulary.

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-scapular.wav

(ornithology) One of a special group of feathers which arise from each of the scapular regions and lie along the sides of the back.


sylph

First attested in 1657. From New Latin sylphes, coined by Paracelsus in the 16th century. The coinage may derive from Latin sylvestris (“of the woods”) and nympha (“nymph”). Ultimately from the root silva (“woods, forest”). Related to sylvan.
More at Wikipedia.

(ornithology) Any of the mainly dark green and blue hummingbirds (genus Aglaiocercus), the male of which has a long forked tail.


birder

Many of the crofters on Fair Isle and Shetland know as much about the birds as the birders.

1980, Bill Oddie, Bill Oddie's Little Black Bird Book, page 47:

It's good to be the king. Even if the kingdom is rather small. It is amazing how often really good birders are borderline megalomaniacs.

2005, Sean Dooley, The Big Twitch, Sydney: Allen and Unwin, page 37:


twitching

twitching (countable and uncountable, plural twitchings)

(birdwatching) Compulsive birdwatching by people (twitchers) who travel long distances to see rare species.


birdwatcher

birdwatchers (plural)
bird watcher (alternative)

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-birdwatcher.wav

Alec Warner was gazing like a bird-watcher at Charmian, who plucked at the rug round her knees, waiting to tell her own story.

1959, Muriel Spark, chapter 5, in Memento Mori, London: Macmillan:

(birdwatching) A person who observes or identifies wild birds in their natural environment.

觀鳥者 /观鸟者

a person who observes or identifies wild birds in their natural environment


zygodactylous

/ˌzeɪɡəʊˈdæktələs/

From zygo- + Ancient Greek δάκτυλος (dáktulos, “finger”).

der

(ornithology) Having two toes pointing forward, and two toes pointing backward.


nestle

en-verb

nestle (third-person singular simple present nestles, present participle nestling, simple past and past participle nestled)

nestles (present singular third-person)
nestling (participle present)
nestled (participle past)
nestled (past)

From Middle English nestelen, nestlen, from Old English nistlan, nestlian, nistlian (“to make or build a nest”), from Proto-West Germanic *nistilōn (“to build or occupy a nest; nestle”), equivalent to nest + -le. Cognate with Middle Low German nëstelen (“to build a nest”), Dutch nestelen (“to nest, nestle”).

cog

The kingfisher […] nestles in hollow banks.

1692, Roger L’Estrange, “ (please specify the fable number.) (please specify the name of the fable.)”, in Fables, of Æsop and Other Eminent Mythologists: […], London: […] R[ichard] Sare, […], →OCLC:

(archaic, ornithology, intransitive) To build or sit upon a nest.

This assimilates them more nearly to the natural conditions when the hen nestles her chicks on the earth, whilst the warmth is given chiefly over their backs.

1871, Gardeners Chronicle & New Horticulturist, volume 31, page 123:

(archaic, ornithology, transitive) Of a bird: to look after its young.


hame

English: hame, heam

From Old English hama, homa, from Proto-West Germanic *hamō, from Proto-Germanic *hamô (“cover, skin”).


versátil

(ornithology) versatile (said that the fingers of some birds can turn forwards or backwards, as in the cuckoo)


carinate

en-adj

carinate (comparative more carinate, superlative most carinate)

more carinate (comparative)
most carinate (superlative)

Borrowed from Latin carīnātus, from carīna (“keel”) + -ātus, see -ate (adjective-forming suffix). The noun comes from a substantivization of the adjective, see -ate (noun-forming suffix).

(ornithology) Of a bird, having a carina, a keeled breastbone allowing the attachment of flight muscles.


carina

Borrowed from Latin carīna (“keel”). Doublet of careen and carene.

(ornithology) The keel of the breastbone of birds.


insistent

insistent (comparative more insistent, superlative most insistent)

more insistent (comparative)
most insistent (superlative)

From Latin insistens, participle of insisto.

(ornithology) Standing on end: specifically said of the hind toe of a bird when its base is inserted so high on the shank that only its tip touches the ground: correlated with incumbent.


syrinx

/sɪˈɹɪnd͡ʒiːz/

Learned borrowing from Latin sȳrinx (“reed; reed pipe, panpipes”), from Ancient Greek σῦριγξ (sûrinx, “panpipes; pipe-shaped object”), from Pre-Greek. Doublet of syringe.
The plural form syringes is a learned borrowing from Latin sȳringes.

der

This tube is named the Windpipe, Trachea, or Aspera-arteria; […] its lower extremity, or the part at which it bifurcates, is the Lower Larynx, or the Syrinx. Besides acting as a pipe to the lungs, it is also the organ of the voice, the air in passing through it causing its membranes so to vibrate, and being so acted upon by the muscles attached to it, as to give rise to the various cries and notes emitted by birds, although the palate, the tongue, and the mandibles also operate in modifying the sounds thus produced.

1839, William MacGillivray, “Practical Ornithology. Fifth Lesson.”, in A History of British Birds, Indigenous and Migratory: […], volume II (Cantatores, Songsters), London: […] [W. Burness] for Scott, Webster, and Geary, […], →OCLC, page 19:

The role of the syrinx in psittacine sound production is still under examination, and probably differs from that of songbirds. […] For species with relatively simple syringes but complex vocal behavior (such as Grey parrots), these data imply that other structures must modify syringeal output.

1999, Irene Maxine Pepperberg, “How Does a Grey Parrot Produce Human Speech Sounds?”, in The Alex Studies: Cognitive and Communicative Abilities of Grey Parrots, Cambridge, Mass.; London: Harvard University Press, published 2002, →ISBN, page 293:

The primary sound-producing organ in a bird is the syrinx and the secondary system aiding sound production consists of the larynx, mouth, tongue and laryngeal muscles. […] Birds vocalise by expelling air over the elastic membranes of the syrinx housed within the inter-clavicular sac, an air sac in the pleural cavity.

2007, Gisela Kaplan, “Emotions, Vocal Behaviour and Communication”, in Tawny Frogmouth (Australian Natural History Series), Collingwood, Melbourne, Vic.: CSIRO Publishing, →ISBN, page 121:

The organ responsible for producing sounds during song is the syrinx, located where the trachea joins the bronchi of the two lungs[…]. Four to six muscles on either side are attached to the syrinx, and sound is produced when air is expelled through it. The flow of air induces part of the syrinx wall to vibrate and generate sound, in a similar way to the operation of the human larynx.

2010, Peter Simmons, David Young, “Nerve Cells and Animal Signalling: Songs of Crickets, Electric Fish and Birds”, in Nerve Cells and Animal Behaviour, 3rd edition, Cambridge, Cambridgeshire: Cambridge University Press, →ISBN, page 247:

(ornithology, zootomy) The voice organ in birds, located at or near where the trachea and the bronchi join.


syrinx

Borrowed from Latin sȳrinx (“reed; reed pipe, panpipes”), from Ancient Greek σῦριγξ (sûrinx, “panpipes; pipe-shaped object”), from Pre-Greek.

bor

(ornithology) syrinx (voice organ in birds)


kaz

head

kaz (definite accusative kazı, plural kazlar)

kazı (accusative definite)
kazlar (plural)
kaz (nominative singular)
kazlar (nominative plural)
kazı (accusative definite singular)
kazları (accusative definite plural)
kaza (dative singular)
kazlara (dative plural)
kazda (locative singular)
kazlarda (locative plural)
kazdan (ablative singular)
kazlardan (ablative plural)
kazın (genitive singular)
kazların (genitive plural)
kazım (first-person nominative singular)
kazlarım (first-person nominative singular)
kazın (nominative second-person singular)
kazların (nominative second-person singular)
kazı (nominative singular third-person)
kazları (nominative singular third-person)
kazımız (first-person nominative plural)
kazlarımız (first-person nominative plural)
kazınız (nominative plural second-person)
kazlarınız (nominative plural second-person)
kazları (nominative plural third-person)
kazımı (accusative definite first-person singular)
kazlarımı (accusative definite first-person singular)
kazını (accusative definite second-person singular)
kazlarını (accusative definite second-person singular)
kazını (accusative definite singular third-person)
kazlarını (accusative definite singular third-person)
kazımızı (accusative definite first-person plural)
kazlarımızı (accusative definite first-person plural)
kazınızı (accusative definite plural second-person)
kazlarınızı (accusative definite plural second-person)
kazlarını (accusative definite plural third-person)
kazıma (dative first-person singular)
kazlarıma (dative first-person singular)
kazına (dative second-person singular)
kazlarına (dative second-person singular)
kazına (dative singular third-person)
kazlarına (dative singular third-person)
kazımıza (dative first-person plural)
kazlarımıza (dative first-person plural)
kazınıza (dative plural second-person)
kazlarınıza (dative plural second-person)
kazlarına (dative plural third-person)
kazımda (first-person locative singular)
kazlarımda (first-person locative singular)
kazında (locative second-person singular)
kazlarında (locative second-person singular)
kazında (locative singular third-person)
kazlarında (locative singular third-person)
kazımızda (first-person locative plural)
kazlarımızda (first-person locative plural)
kazınızda (locative plural second-person)
kazlarınızda (locative plural second-person)
kazlarında (locative plural third-person)
kazımdan (ablative first-person singular)
kazlarımdan (ablative first-person singular)
kazından (ablative second-person singular)
kazlarından (ablative second-person singular)
kazından (ablative singular third-person)
kazlarından (ablative singular third-person)
kazımızdan (ablative first-person plural)
kazlarımızdan (ablative first-person plural)
kazınızdan (ablative plural second-person)
kazlarınızdan (ablative plural second-person)
kazlarından (ablative plural third-person)
kazımın (first-person genitive singular)
kazlarımın (first-person genitive singular)
kazının (genitive second-person singular)
kazlarının (genitive second-person singular)
kazının (genitive singular third-person)
kazlarının (genitive singular third-person)
kazımızın (first-person genitive plural)
kazlarımızın (first-person genitive plural)
kazınızın (genitive plural second-person)
kazlarınızın (genitive plural second-person)
kazlarının (genitive plural third-person)
kazım (first-person singular)
kazlarım (first-person singular)
kazsın (second-person singular)
kazlarsın (second-person singular)
kaz (singular third-person)
kazdır (singular third-person)
kazlar (singular third-person)
kazlardır (singular third-person)
kazız (first-person plural)
kazlarız (first-person plural)
kazsınız (plural second-person)
kazlarsınız (plural second-person)
kazlar (plural third-person)
kazlardır (plural third-person)

From Ottoman Turkish قاز (kaz, “goose”), from Proto-Turkic *kāŕ (“goose”).


plumulaceous

en-adj

plumulaceous (comparative more plumulaceous, superlative most plumulaceous)

more plumulaceous (comparative)
most plumulaceous (superlative)

(zoology, ornithology) Downy; bearing down.


pullus

(ornithology) A chick; a young bird in the downy stage.


pullus

Unadapted borrowing from Latin pullus. Doublet of pul.

(ornithology) a pullus; the young chick of a bird


faeder

Learned borrowing from Old English fæder (“father”). Doublet of ayr, father, padre, pater, and père.

doublet

Here, we describe a rare female-like morph of ruffs: the ‘missing’ third alternative mating strategy, which we have called ‘faeder’. Faeders are slightly larger than females and in late April have testes 2.5 time the size of testes of normal males.

2006 June 22, Joop Jukema, “Permanent female mimics in a lekking shorebird”, in Biology Letters:

Faeders, male ruffs that mimic females in plumage and "sneak" copulations at leks, secrete monoesters like other males.

2007, Jeroen Willem Hendrik Reneerkens, Functional aspects of seasonal variation in preen wax composition of sandpipers (Scolopacidae), page 49:

It has recently been discovered that a third mating strategy exists for males - the 'faeder' or 'sneaker', which number only about 1% of the Ruff population.

2009, Richard J. Chandler, Shorebirds of North America, Europe, and Asia: A Photographic Guide:

These “faeder” males, as they are called, were found to have testes 2.5 times larger than those of normal males during the peak breeding time of late April and are delightfully termed “sneakers.”

2016, Clifford B. Frith, Charles Darwin's Life With Birds: His Complete Ornithology:

Philomachus pugnax
Philomachus pugnax#Translingual

(ornithology) A male ruff (bird, Philomachus pugnax, syn. Calidris pugnax) that permanently mimics a female so as to gain access to mating territories and "steal" matings.


cere

From Middle English sere, from Old French cire, from Latin cera (“wax, cere”), or via Latin cero (“I smear or coat with wax”).

The cere is the fleshy spot just above the beak where the nostrils, or nares, are located. In some species, like the parakeet, the cere is prominent; in others, the cere is covered by feathers. Both the cere and the nares should be clean[…]

2021, Nikki Moustaki, Parrots For Dummies, John Wiley & Sons, →ISBN, page 182:

(ornithology) A fleshy, waxy area at the base of the upper beak in certain birds.


baldie

The bald eagle is the national bird of the United States. Plus the bird is endangered. So, yeah, I'd probably have a problem with sitting down to a plate of baldie for dinner.

1999 August 15, Staca Hiatt, “Re: Anyone ever tried emu?”, in alt.support.diet.low-fat (Usenet):

They are almost always accompanied by immature bald eagles that, although about the same size as a mature baldie, have a darkened head and mottled feathers.

2010, Bruce Squiers, “Winter's Majesty”, in Marty Becker, Gina Spadafori, Mikkel Becker Shannon, editors, The Ultimate Bird Lover: Stories and Advice on Our Feathered Friends at Home and in the Wild, Health Communications, Inc., →ISBN, page 161:

Haliaeetus leucocephalus
Haliaeetus leucocephalus#Translingual

(birdwatching, slang) A bald eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus).


échasse

Inherited from Middle French eschesse, from Old French eschace (“crutch, stilt”), from Frankish *skakkjā, from Proto-Germanic *skakaną.

(ornithology) One of a number of stilt birds, not always directly corresponding to English stilt


Spatz

de-noun

Spatz m (mixed or weak, genitive Spatzes or Spatzen, plural Spatzen)

Spatzes (genitive)
Spatzen (genitive)
Spatzen (plural)
Spatz (nominative singular)
Spatzen (definite nominative plural)
Spatzes (genitive singular)
Spatzen (genitive singular)
Spatzen (definite genitive plural)
Spatz (dative singular)
Spatze (dative singular)
Spatzen (dative singular)
Spatzen (dative definite plural)
Spatz (accusative singular)
Spatzen (accusative singular)
Spatzen (accusative definite plural)

→ Luxembourgish: Spatz

From Middle High German spaz, spatze, from a diminutive of sparwe, from Old High German sparo + -izo (compare Wanze and names like Fritz, Heinz, Kunz). Related with Sperling.

Passer domesticus
Passer domesticus#Translingual

(ornithology, technical) house sparrow (Passer domesticus)


Wachs

Wachs n or (nonstandard) m (strong, genitive Wachses, plural Wachse)

Wachses (genitive)
Wachse (plural)
Wachs (definite nominative singular)
Wachse (definite nominative plural)
Wachses (genitive singular)
Wachse (definite genitive plural)
Wachs (dative singular)
Wachse (dative singular)
Wachsen (dative definite plural)
Wachs (accusative definite singular)
Wachse (accusative definite plural)

desctree

→ Russian: вакса (vaksa)
→ Armenian: վաքս (vakʻs), վակս (vaks)
→ Persian: واکس (vâks)

From Middle High German wahs, from Old High German wahs, from Proto-Germanic *wahsą. Akin to Luxembourgish Wuess, Dutch was, English wax, Danish voks, Swedish vax.


bateleur

fr-noun

bateleur m (plural bateleurs, feminine bateleuse)


ramus

(ornithology) The stem of a barb of a feather, from which the barbules extend.


pennaceous

en-adj

pennaceous (comparative more pennaceous, superlative most pennaceous)

more pennaceous (comparative)
most pennaceous (superlative)

(ornithology) having the structure of a normal feather


dipping

en-noun

dipping (countable and uncountable, plural dippings)

That same trip would have to go down as the greatest dipping fest in Australian birding history. I had five target species and never saw one, despite spending a week looking for them.

2005, Sean Dooley, The Big Twitch, Sydney: Allen and Unwin, page 35:

(birdwatching) The act or fact of missing out on seeing a bird.


beardless

en-adj

beardless (comparative more beardless, superlative most beardless)

more beardless (comparative)
most beardless (superlative)

From Middle English bērdlēs, from Old English beardlēas (“beardless”), from Proto-West Germanic *bardalaus (“beardless”), equivalent to beard + -less. Cognate with Scots berdles (“beardless”), Saterland Frisian boartloos (“beardless”), West Frisian burdleas (“beardless”), Dutch baardeloos (“beardless”), German Low German baartlos (“beardless”), German bartlos (“beardless”).

cog

(ornithology) Lacking a beard (a defined patch of feathers below the beak).


palmated

From Latin palmātus (“embroidered with palms”).

der

(ornithology, zoology) Having digits connected by a thin membrane; webbed.

räpylä-

having digits connected by thin membrane


aigrette

Borrowed from French aigrette (“egret”). Doublet of egret.

Birds of many kinds skimmed the weedy flats. George pointed out a flock of aigrets, the beautiful wild fowl with the priceless plumes.

1912, Zane Grey, chapter 3, in Ken Ward in the Jungle, New York: Grosset & Dunlap, page 31:


maypole

maypoles (plural)
may-pole (alternative)

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-maypole.wav

The male Golden Bowerbird is a beautiful bird that builds one of the greatest structures in the natural world, a maypole up to three metres tall constructed of sticks and festooned with decorative clusters of flowers and lichens.

2005, Sean Dooley, The Big Twitch, Sydney: Allen and Unwin, page 212:

(ornithology) A maypole-like structure of sticks placed about a sapling in the bowers of certain species of bowerbird.


pinguino

From English penguin, French pingouin, German Pinguin, Italian pinguino, Russian пингви́н (pingvín), Spanish pingüino.


rondine

From Latin hirundō, hirundinem. Compare French hirondelle.

una rondine non fa primavera


strolaga beccogiallo

it-noun

strolaga beccogiallo f (plural strolaghe beccogiallo)

Gavia adamsii
Gavia adamsii#Translingual


stringy

en-adj

stringy (comparative stringier, superlative stringiest)

stringier (comparative)
stringiest (superlative)

There are few birders who have not had stringy ticks on their lists at some stage.

1980, Bill Oddie, Bill Oddie's Little Black Bird Book, page 76:

(birdwatching) Of a sighting, unlikely to be accurate; probably based on a misidentification, whether innocent or deliberate.


confiding

confiding (comparative more confiding, superlative most confiding)

more confiding (comparative)
most confiding (superlative)

(birdwatching) Of a bird, allowing the close approach of humans.


calamus

en-noun

calamus (usually uncountable, plural calamuses or calami)

Learned borrowing from Latin calamus (“reed, cane”), from Ancient Greek κάλαμος (kálamos). Doublet of culm, haulm, helm (Etymology 4), qalam, and shawm.

dbt

Thus, the four distinct feather parts that have been compared as to amino acid content to note whether or not the composition is uniform are rachis, barbs, calamus and medulla.

1956, Advisory Board on Quartermaster Research and Development, The Utilization of Chicken Feathers as Filling Materials, page 9:

In follicles late in feather growth, after rupture of the feather sheath, this canal contained the upper part of the calamus.

1969, RIC Spearman, “The epidermis and feather follicles of the king penguin (Aptenodytes patagonica) (aves)”, in Zeitschrift für Morphologie der Tiere:

Chapin asserted that the calamus is firmly fixed in the wing

1969, CH Fry, “Structural and functional adaptation to display in the Standard‐winged nightjar Macrodipteryx longipennis”, in Journal of Zoology:

(ornithology) A quill; the hard, horny, hollow, and more or less transparent part of the stem or scape of a feather.


barbule

PIE word
 *bʰardʰéh₂
Borrowed from Latin barbula (“little beard”).

(ornithology) Any of the secondary barbs that form a fringe of small projections on a feather.


huo

Borrowed from French huet. See hueto. Decision no. 1402, Progreso VII.

(ornithology) owl, particularly the little owl (Athene noctua)


AVM

en-noun

AVM (countable and uncountable, plural AVMs)

avian vacuolar myelinopathy
avian vacuolar myelinopathy#English

(pathology, ornithology) Initialism of avian vacuolar myelinopathy.


uropygial

/jʊəɹə(ʊ)ˈpɪd͡ʒɪəl/

[…] [Aderyn the Bird Queen], on whose face a kind of agitated oil or sweat was spreading thinly, an uropygial secretion.

1971, Anthony Burgess, M/F, Penguin, published 2004, page 158:

(ornithology) Of or pertaining to the uropygium; on the rump.


didine

(ornithology, obsolete) A bird of the columbid subfamily Raphinae.


아비

Sino-Korean word from 阿比, from 阿 (“hill”) + 比 (“to compare”).
Wikispecies

ko-etym-sino

(ornithology) a loon or diver; any diving bird of the family Gaviidae


pinion

From Middle English pynyon, from Old French pignon, from Latin penna (“feather”).

(ornithology) The joint of a bird's wing farthest from the body.

An argument that he is pluckt, when hither / He ſends ſo poore a Pinnion of his Wing,

c. 1606–1607 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Anthonie and Cleopatra”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act III, scene xii], page 356, column 2:

(ornithology) Any of the outermost primary feathers on a bird's wing.


anseriform

en-adj

anseriform (comparative more anseriform, superlative most anseriform)

more anseriform (comparative)
most anseriform (superlative)

For more than a century anseriform birds were considered to have been closely related to, and to have originated from, the game fowl of the order Galliformes.

2004, Peter F. Murray et.al., Magnificent Mihirungs: The Colossal Flightless Birds of the Australian Dreamtime:

(ornithology) Of or pertaining to birds of the order Anseriformes including ducks, geese, swans, and screamers.


ruoto

ruoto (nominative singular)
ruodot (nominative plural)
ruoto (accusative nominative singular)
ruodot (accusative nominative plural)
ruodon (accusative genitive singular)
ruodot (accusative genitive plural)
ruodon (genitive singular)
ruotojen (genitive plural)
ruotoa (partitive singular)
ruotoja (partitive plural)
ruodossa (inessive singular)
ruodoissa (inessive plural)
ruodosta (elative singular)
ruodoista (elative plural)
ruotoon (illative singular)
ruotoihin (illative plural)
ruodolla (adessive singular)
ruodoilla (adessive plural)
ruodolta (ablative singular)
ruodoilta (ablative plural)
ruodolle (allative singular)
ruodoille (allative plural)
ruotona (essive singular)
ruotoina (essive plural)
ruodoksi (singular translative)
ruodoiksi (plural translative)
ruodotta (abessive singular)
ruodoitta (abessive plural)
ruodoin (instructive plural)
See the possessive forms below. (comitative)
ruotoni (nominative singular)
ruotoni (nominative plural)
ruotoni (accusative nominative singular)
ruotoni (accusative nominative plural)
ruotoni (accusative genitive singular)
ruotoni (accusative genitive plural)
ruotoni (genitive singular)
ruotojeni (genitive plural)
ruotoani (partitive singular)
ruotojani (partitive plural)
ruodossani (inessive singular)
ruodoissani (inessive plural)
ruodostani (elative singular)
ruodoistani (elative plural)
ruotooni (illative singular)
ruotoihini (illative plural)
ruodollani (adessive singular)
ruodoillani (adessive plural)
ruodoltani (ablative singular)
ruodoiltani (ablative plural)
ruodolleni (allative singular)
ruodoilleni (allative plural)
ruotonani (essive singular)
ruotoinani (essive plural)
ruodokseni (singular translative)
ruodoikseni (plural translative)
ruodottani (abessive singular)
ruodoittani (abessive plural)
ruotoineni (comitative plural)
ruotosi (nominative singular)
ruotosi (nominative plural)
ruotosi (accusative nominative singular)
ruotosi (accusative nominative plural)
ruotosi (accusative genitive singular)
ruotosi (accusative genitive plural)
ruotosi (genitive singular)
ruotojesi (genitive plural)
ruotoasi (partitive singular)
ruotojasi (partitive plural)
ruodossasi (inessive singular)
ruodoissasi (inessive plural)
ruodostasi (elative singular)
ruodoistasi (elative plural)
ruotoosi (illative singular)
ruotoihisi (illative plural)
ruodollasi (adessive singular)
ruodoillasi (adessive plural)
ruodoltasi (ablative singular)
ruodoiltasi (ablative plural)
ruodollesi (allative singular)
ruodoillesi (allative plural)
ruotonasi (essive singular)
ruotoinasi (essive plural)
ruodoksesi (singular translative)
ruodoiksesi (plural translative)
ruodottasi (abessive singular)
ruodoittasi (abessive plural)
ruotoinesi (comitative plural)
ruotomme (nominative singular)
ruotomme (nominative plural)
ruotomme (accusative nominative singular)
ruotomme (accusative nominative plural)
ruotomme (accusative genitive singular)
ruotomme (accusative genitive plural)
ruotomme (genitive singular)
ruotojemme (genitive plural)
ruotoamme (partitive singular)
ruotojamme (partitive plural)
ruodossamme (inessive singular)
ruodoissamme (inessive plural)
ruodostamme (elative singular)
ruodoistamme (elative plural)
ruotoomme (illative singular)
ruotoihimme (illative plural)
ruodollamme (adessive singular)
ruodoillamme (adessive plural)
ruodoltamme (ablative singular)
ruodoiltamme (ablative plural)
ruodollemme (allative singular)
ruodoillemme (allative plural)
ruotonamme (essive singular)
ruotoinamme (essive plural)
ruodoksemme (singular translative)
ruodoiksemme (plural translative)
ruodottamme (abessive singular)
ruodoittamme (abessive plural)
ruotoinemme (comitative plural)
ruotonne (nominative singular)
ruotonne (nominative plural)
ruotonne (accusative nominative singular)
ruotonne (accusative nominative plural)
ruotonne (accusative genitive singular)
ruotonne (accusative genitive plural)
ruotonne (genitive singular)
ruotojenne (genitive plural)
ruotoanne (partitive singular)
ruotojanne (partitive plural)
ruodossanne (inessive singular)
ruodoissanne (inessive plural)
ruodostanne (elative singular)
ruodoistanne (elative plural)
ruotoonne (illative singular)
ruotoihinne (illative plural)
ruodollanne (adessive singular)
ruodoillanne (adessive plural)
ruodoltanne (ablative singular)
ruodoiltanne (ablative plural)
ruodollenne (allative singular)
ruodoillenne (allative plural)
ruotonanne (essive singular)
ruotoinanne (essive plural)
ruodoksenne (singular translative)
ruodoiksenne (plural translative)
ruodottanne (abessive singular)
ruodoittanne (abessive plural)
ruotoinenne (comitative plural)
ruotonsa (nominative singular)
ruotonsa (nominative plural)
ruotonsa (accusative nominative singular)
ruotonsa (accusative nominative plural)
ruotonsa (accusative genitive singular)
ruotonsa (accusative genitive plural)
ruotonsa (genitive singular)
ruotojensa (genitive plural)
ruotoaan (partitive singular)
ruotoansa (partitive singular)
ruotojaan (partitive plural)
ruotojansa (partitive plural)
ruodossaan (inessive singular)
ruodossansa (inessive singular)
ruodoissaan (inessive plural)
ruodoissansa (inessive plural)
ruodostaan (elative singular)
ruodostansa (elative singular)
ruodoistaan (elative plural)
ruodoistansa (elative plural)
ruotoonsa (illative singular)
ruotoihinsa (illative plural)
ruodollaan (adessive singular)
ruodollansa (adessive singular)
ruodoillaan (adessive plural)
ruodoillansa (adessive plural)
ruodoltaan (ablative singular)
ruodoltansa (ablative singular)
ruodoiltaan (ablative plural)
ruodoiltansa (ablative plural)
ruodolleen (allative singular)
ruodollensa (allative singular)
ruodoilleen (allative plural)
ruodoillensa (allative plural)
ruotonaan (essive singular)
ruotonansa (essive singular)
ruotoinaan (essive plural)
ruotoinansa (essive plural)
ruodokseen (singular translative)
ruodoksensa (singular translative)
ruodoikseen (plural translative)
ruodoiksensa (plural translative)
ruodottaan (abessive singular)
ruodottansa (abessive singular)
ruodoittaan (abessive plural)
ruodoittansa (abessive plural)
ruotoineen (comitative plural)
ruotoinensa (comitative plural)

From Proto-Finnic *rooto, possibly borrowed from Proto-Germanic *rōdō (“rod, pole”). Cognate to Veps rod.


gleaning

en-noun

gleaning (countable and uncountable, plural gleanings)

(ornithology) The catching of insects and other invertebrates by plucking them from within foliage, or sometimes from the ground. It may also be applied to where prey is picked off, or from within, natural and man-made surfaces such as rock faces and under the eaves of houses.


beauty spot

From beauty (noun) + spot (noun). Some uses of sense 1 (“thing which is beautiful”) are figurative uses of sense 1.2 (“patch on the face to heighten beauty”).

kauneuspilkku

(archaic) A thing (especially an aspect of something) which is beautiful.

(ornithology, archaic) Synonym of speculum (“a bright, lustrous patch of colour found on the wings of ducks and some other birds, usually situated on the distal portions of the secondary quills, and much more brilliant in the adult male than in the female”).


turdiform

en-adj

turdiform (comparative more turdiform, superlative most turdiform)

more turdiform (comparative)
most turdiform (superlative)

(ornithology, rare) Of, relating to or resembling a thrush, or any other bird of the family Turdidae.


clutch initiation

en-noun

clutch initiation (plural clutch initiations)


prapor

prapor (nominative singular)
prapory (nominative plural)
praporu (genitive singular)
praporů (genitive plural)
praporu (dative singular)
praporům (dative plural)
prapor (accusative singular)
prapory (accusative plural)
prapore (singular vocative)
prapory (plural vocative)
praporu (locative singular)
praporech (locative plural)
praporem (instrumental singular)
prapory (instrumental plural)


sharpie

It is harder to gauge the shorter tail of sharpies, but on sitting birds the tail shape is a more useful character than it is on flying birds. Sharpies of all ages and sexes almost always show a notched tail when they are sitting.

2005, Bill Thompson, Eirik A. T. Blom, Jeffrey A. Gordon, Identify Yourself: The 50 Most Common Birding Identification Challenges, page 93:

My mother had lost a considerable number of spring chicks to a raiding sharpie.

2010, Era S. VanDenburg, The Natural World of Ivy Lane, page 48:

sharp-shinned hawk
sharp-shinned hawk#English

(birdwatching, US) Clipping of sharp-shinned hawk.

The bird looked of a similar character to a knot/pec sandpiper/sharpie, but the exact size was difficult to judge[.]

2009 August 26, Rewi, “Help me Identify a Wader please”, in Birding NZ, archived from the original on 2025-01-01:

I went back into my photos, and yes, on 13 Nov, I photographed both Sharpie and the Pec.

2019 November 21, Stan Jarzynski, “Possible Pectoral Sandpiper”, in canberrabirds mailing list:

sharp-tailed sandpiper
sharp-tailed sandpiper#English

(birdwatching, Australia, New Zealand) Clipping of sharp-tailed sandpiper.


piratical

en-adj

piratical (comparative more piratical, superlative most piratical)

more piratical (comparative)
most piratical (superlative)
piratic (alternative)

From Latin pīrāticus + -al, from Ancient Greek πειρᾱτικός (peirātikós); equivalent to pirate + -ical.

(ornithology) Of a bird, practising kleptoparasitism.


buche

From Late Latin buccula, from Vulgar Latin *buccula, from Latin bucca. The form was influenced by Old French bouge (“small bag”).

La causa por que el Alicanto no puede volar, no reside en sus alas, que son perfectamente normales, sino en su buche, por la pesadez de los alimentos que ingiere.

1915, Julio Vicuña Cifuentes, Mitos y Supersticiones Recogidos de la Tradición Oral Chilena, page 1:

The reason that the Alicanto cannot fly is not to be found in its wings, which are perfectly normal, but in its crop, due to the weight of the foods it eats.

(ornithology, anatomy) crop (pouch-like part of the alimentary tract of some birds)


závoj

závoj (nominative singular)
závoje (nominative plural)
závoje (genitive singular)
závojů (genitive plural)
závoji (dative singular)
závojům (dative plural)
závoj (accusative singular)
závoje (accusative plural)
závoji (singular vocative)
závoje (plural vocative)
závoji (locative singular)
závojích (locative plural)
závojem (instrumental singular)
závoji (instrumental plural)

Inherited from Old Czech závoj. Deverbal from zavíjet.


γεράκι

head

γεράκι • (geráki) n (plural γεράκια, feminine γερακίνα)

geráki (romanization)
γεράκια (plural)
γερακίνα (feminine)
γεράκι (nominative singular)
γεράκια (nominative plural)
γερακιού (genitive singular)
γερακιών (genitive plural)
γεράκι (accusative singular)
γεράκια (accusative plural)
γεράκι (singular vocative)
γεράκια (plural vocative)

From Byzantine Greek γεράκιν (gerákin), from Koine Greek ἱεράκιον (hierákion), diminutive of Ancient Greek ἱέραξ (hiérax). See also ιέρακας (iérakas).

(ornithology) bird of prey, hawk, falcon, buzzard


klucz

pl-noun

klucz m inan (diminutive kluczyk, related adjective kluczowy)

kluczyk (diminutive)
kluczowy (adjective)
klucz (nominative singular)
klucze (nominative plural)
klucza (genitive singular)
kluczy (genitive plural)
kluczowi (dative singular)
kluczom (dative plural)
klucz (accusative singular)
klucze (accusative plural)
kluczem (instrumental singular)
kluczami (instrumental plural)
kluczu (locative singular)
kluczach (locative plural)
kluczu (singular vocative)
klucze (plural vocative)

(ornithology) V formation (V-shaped flight formation)


ördek

head

ördek (definite accusative ördeği, plural ördekler)

ördeği (accusative definite)
ördekler (plural)
ördek (nominative singular)
ördekler (nominative plural)
ördeği (accusative definite singular)
ördekleri (accusative definite plural)
ördeğe (dative singular)
ördeklere (dative plural)
ördekte (locative singular)
ördeklerde (locative plural)
ördekten (ablative singular)
ördeklerden (ablative plural)
ördeğin (genitive singular)
ördeklerin (genitive plural)
ördeğim (first-person nominative singular)
ördeklerim (first-person nominative singular)
ördeğin (nominative second-person singular)
ördeklerin (nominative second-person singular)
ördeği (nominative singular third-person)
ördekleri (nominative singular third-person)
ördeğimiz (first-person nominative plural)
ördeklerimiz (first-person nominative plural)
ördeğiniz (nominative plural second-person)
ördekleriniz (nominative plural second-person)
ördekleri (nominative plural third-person)
ördeğimi (accusative definite first-person singular)
ördeklerimi (accusative definite first-person singular)
ördeğini (accusative definite second-person singular)
ördeklerini (accusative definite second-person singular)
ördeğini (accusative definite singular third-person)
ördeklerini (accusative definite singular third-person)
ördeğimizi (accusative definite first-person plural)
ördeklerimizi (accusative definite first-person plural)
ördeğinizi (accusative definite plural second-person)
ördeklerinizi (accusative definite plural second-person)
ördeklerini (accusative definite plural third-person)
ördeğime (dative first-person singular)
ördeklerime (dative first-person singular)
ördeğine (dative second-person singular)
ördeklerine (dative second-person singular)
ördeğine (dative singular third-person)
ördeklerine (dative singular third-person)
ördeğimize (dative first-person plural)
ördeklerimize (dative first-person plural)
ördeğinize (dative plural second-person)
ördeklerinize (dative plural second-person)
ördeklerine (dative plural third-person)
ördeğimde (first-person locative singular)
ördeklerimde (first-person locative singular)
ördeğinde (locative second-person singular)
ördeklerinde (locative second-person singular)
ördeğinde (locative singular third-person)
ördeklerinde (locative singular third-person)
ördeğimizde (first-person locative plural)
ördeklerimizde (first-person locative plural)
ördeğinizde (locative plural second-person)
ördeklerinizde (locative plural second-person)
ördeklerinde (locative plural third-person)
ördeğimden (ablative first-person singular)
ördeklerimden (ablative first-person singular)
ördeğinden (ablative second-person singular)
ördeklerinden (ablative second-person singular)
ördeğinden (ablative singular third-person)
ördeklerinden (ablative singular third-person)
ördeğimizden (ablative first-person plural)
ördeklerimizden (ablative first-person plural)
ördeğinizden (ablative plural second-person)
ördeklerinizden (ablative plural second-person)
ördeklerinden (ablative plural third-person)
ördeğimin (first-person genitive singular)
ördeklerimin (first-person genitive singular)
ördeğinin (genitive second-person singular)
ördeklerinin (genitive second-person singular)
ördeğinin (genitive singular third-person)
ördeklerinin (genitive singular third-person)
ördeğimizin (first-person genitive plural)
ördeklerimizin (first-person genitive plural)
ördeğinizin (genitive plural second-person)
ördeklerinizin (genitive plural second-person)
ördeklerinin (genitive plural third-person)

From Ottoman Turkish اوردك (ördek, “duck”), from Proto-Turkic *ȫrdek (“duck”). Cognate with Karakhanid اۥرْدَكْ (ördek, “duck”).


ördek

ördek (definite accusative ördegi, plural ördekler)

ördegi (accusative definite)
ördekler (plural)
ördek (nominative singular)
ördekler (nominative plural)
ördegi (accusative singular)
ördekleri (accusative plural)
ördegiň (genitive singular)
ördekleriň (genitive plural)
ördege (dative singular)
ördeklere (dative plural)
ördekde (locative singular)
ördeklerde (locative plural)
ördekden (ablative singular)
ördeklerden (ablative plural)

Inherited from Proto-Turkic *ȫrdek (“duck”).


Tyrann

de-noun

Tyrann m (weak, genitive Tyrannen, plural Tyrannen, feminine Tyrannin)

Tyrannen (genitive)
Tyrannen (plural)
Tyrannin (feminine)
Tyrann (nominative singular)
Tyrannen (definite nominative plural)
Tyrannen (genitive singular)
Tyrannen (definite genitive plural)
Tyrannen (dative singular)
Tyrannen (dative definite plural)
Tyrannen (accusative singular)
Tyrannen (accusative definite plural)