Citellus richardsoni
- noun
- Specialized
:
sciurido de Richardson
- The Citellus richardsoni can often be seen standing upright in open grasslands, keeping watch for predators.
Examples
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Researchers have studied the hibernation patterns of Citellus richardsoni in the prairies of Canada.
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Farmers sometimes consider Citellus richardsoni a pest because of its extensive burrowing activity.
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The Citellus richardsoni is often found in open grasslands.
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Have you ever seen a Citellus richardsoni in the wild?
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Farmers sometimes consider Citellus richardsoni a pest because of its extensive burrowing activity.
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The Citellus richardsoni can often be seen standing upright in open grasslands, keeping watch for predators.
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Researchers have studied the hibernation patterns of Citellus richardsoni in the prairies of Canada.
Synonyms
A small squirrel that lives in the grasslands of western North America and digs burrows
A small ground squirrel with a tail that moves quickly in western grasslands
Surface Forms
Morphology
Citellus + richardsoni
The genus name 'Citellus' transparently denotes ground squirrels, so part of the meaning (a type of ground squirrel) is recoverable from the constituents. However 'richardsoni' is a Latinized commemorative epithet (not a regular English word), so interpreting the full label as 'Richardson's ground squirrel' requires knowledge of binomial naming conventions rather than straightforward composition, making the expression only partially transparent to a B1 learner.
Etymology
Citellus richardsoni comes from the animal name and the person who described it: Citellus is an old word for a small ground squirrel and richardsoni shows it was named after the scientist John Richardson. So the name simply means 'Richardson's ground squirrel', which helps you remember it is that particular ground squirrel species.
