family Apterygidae

9.9

A group of flightless birds from New Zealand that includes the kiwi

noun
/ˈfæmɪli ˌæpˈtɛrɪˌɡɪdeɪ/

Specialized

: familia Apterygidae

The family Apterygidae is best known for its only extant members, the kiwi birds of New Zealand.

Examples

All living species in the family Apterygidae are endemic to New Zealand.
Scientists have studied the evolution of the family Apterygidae to better understand flightless birds.
The family Apterygidae includes several species of kiwi.
Have you heard about the family Apterygidae?
All living species in the family Apterygidae are endemic to New Zealand.
The family Apterygidae is best known for its only extant members, the kiwi birds of New Zealand.
Scientists have studied the evolution of the family Apterygidae to better understand flightless birds.

Synonyms

Apterygidae

vsfamily Apterygidae

Specialized

9.9

A family of flightless birds from New Zealand that includes kiwis

notes that the group is the sole member of its taxonomic order

Surface Forms

family Apterygidae singular

families Apterygidae plural

Morphology

family + Apterygidae

Given knowledge of both constituents, the phrase is fully compositional: 'family' as a taxonomic grouping combined with the proper taxon name 'Apterygidae' yields the meaning 'the taxonomic family called Apterygidae (flightless birds, i.e. kiwis)'. This construction (rank + taxon name) is a transparent, cross-linguistically common pattern in scientific nomenclature, so a learner who knows the two words will readily understand the MWE.

Etymology

Family Apterygidae comes from old word parts a- and pteryg- that mean 'without' and 'wing', so the name literally says a group of wingless birds. That's why it refers to the family of birds that cannot fly, like the kiwi of New Zealand.