family Diomedeidae

9.4

A group of large seabirds called albatrosses that live mainly in the Southern Ocean and North Pacific

noun
/ˈfæmɪli daɪəˈmiːdeɪˌdeɪ/

Specialized

: familia Diomedeidae

The family Diomedeidae comprises all species of albatross, some of the largest flying birds.

Examples

The family Diomedeidae includes some of the largest flying birds.
Many species in the family Diomedeidae are known for their impressive wingspans.
Conservationists are concerned about declining populations within the family Diomedeidae due to fishing practices.
Researchers have observed that members of the family Diomedeidae can glide for hours without flapping their wings.
Conservationists are concerned about declining populations within the family Diomedeidae due to fishing practices.
The family Diomedeidae comprises all species of albatross, some of the largest flying birds.
Many species in the family Diomedeidae are known for their impressive wingspans.

Synonyms

Diomedeidae

vsfamily Diomedeidae

Specialized

9.9

A group of very large seabirds with long wings that glide over the ocean

is the same but adds an explicit rank label instead of the scientific name

Surface Forms

family Diomedeidae singular

families Diomedeidae plural

Morphology

family + Diomedeidae

This phrase is fully compositional: 'family' (a scientific grouping) combined with the taxon name 'Diomedeidae' simply denotes the taxonomic family of albatrosses. A B1 learner who knows both constituent meanings can readily infer it refers to that family, and this naming pattern is cross‑linguistically regular.

Etymology

Family Diomedeidae may come from the Greek hero Diomedes, because one old story says his companions were turned into birds and sailors later used his name for large sea birds. So family Diomedeidae is the scientific name for the group of 'albatrosses', the large sea birds that can glide for hours.