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Glite Dictionary
Tyrannus vociferans

Tyrannus vociferans

9.9
A grey bird with a yellow belly that lives in the southwestern United States
  • noun
  • Specialized
translation icon : Tyrannus vociferans
  • The Tyrannus vociferans is easily identified by its grey plumage and yellow belly.

Examples

  • Many birdwatchers travel to Arizona to spot the distinctive Tyrannus vociferans during migration season.

  • The Tyrannus vociferans is known for its loud call.

  • Biologists studied the nesting habits of Tyrannus vociferans in the canyon region.

  • Have you ever seen a Tyrannus vociferans in the wild?

  • Biologists studied the nesting habits of Tyrannus vociferans in the canyon region.

  • Many birdwatchers travel to Arizona to spot the distinctive Tyrannus vociferans during migration season.

  • The Tyrannus vociferans is easily identified by its grey plumage and yellow belly.

Synonyms

Cassin's kingbird
vsTyrannus vociferans
  • US
9.7

A medium grey bird with a yellow belly found in the southwestern United States

is the scientific species name referring to the same bird

Surface Forms

Tyrannus vociferans singular
Tyrannus vociferans plural

Morphology

Tyrannus + vociferans

This is a Latin binomial (scientific name) rather than a normal English phrase; the constituents are taxonomic/Latin forms (Tyrannus and vociferans) and one is not even found in the dictionary. Scientific names function as labels for species and are not compositionally interpretable by a B1 learner, so the species meaning cannot be derived from the parts.

Etymology

Tyrannus vociferans comes from Latin words: Tyrannus meaning 'tyrant' and vociferans meaning 'noisy'. Observers called this bird a 'tyrant' because it boldly defends its nest and 'noisy' because it makes loud calls, so the name fits the grey bird with a yellow belly.