Columba livia
- noun
- /kəˈlʌmbə ˈlɪviə/
- Specialized
:
Columba livia
- Ornithologists often refer to the common city pigeon by its scientific name, Columba livia.
Examples
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Many of our domestic pigeon breeds trace their ancestry back to Columba livia.
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The Columba livia is commonly found in urban environments around the world.
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The Columba livia is often found in urban areas.
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Did you know that Columba livia can adapt to various environments?
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Many of our domestic pigeon breeds trace their ancestry back to Columba livia.
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Ornithologists often refer to the common city pigeon by its scientific name, Columba livia.
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The Columba livia is commonly found in urban environments around the world.
Synonyms
A wild grey pigeon with black stripes on its wings that many domestic pigeons come from
A pale grey pigeon with black-striped wings from Europe and Asia
Surface Forms
Morphology
Columba + livia
This is a Latin scientific binomial rather than a compositional English phrase: its parts are proper Latin names (genus + specific epithet) and do not form a predictable English meaning. Even if a learner recognized 'Columba' as related to pigeons, the epithet 'livia' is not transparent or interpretable to a B1 learner, so the species identity cannot be derived from the constituents.
Etymology
Columba livia comes from old Latin words: Columba means 'dove' or 'pigeon' and livia means 'pale grey'. So the name is like calling it a 'pale dove', which fits the common city pigeon we see today.
