Sturnella magna
- noun
- Specialized
- The Sturnella magna displays a striking black 'V' on its yellow breast.
Examples
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The call of the Sturnella magna is a familiar sound in the springtime fields of the Midwest.
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Researchers observed a flock of Sturnella magna nesting in the tall grasses near the nature reserve.
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The Sturnella magna is often seen in open fields.
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Have you ever heard the song of a Sturnella magna?
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Researchers observed a flock of Sturnella magna nesting in the tall grasses near the nature reserve.
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The Sturnella magna displays a striking black 'V' on its yellow breast.
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The call of the Sturnella magna is a familiar sound in the springtime fields of the Midwest.
Synonyms
A North American bird with a yellow chest that sings sweetly
A medium-sized songbird of eastern North America with a bright yellow belly and a black V on its chest
Surface Forms
Morphology
Sturnella + magna
The binomial combines a genus name (Sturnella = meadowlark) with a Latin epithet (magna ≈ ‘large/great’). If a learner knows both constituents they can infer it denotes a (large) species of meadowlark, but the specific taxonomic identity and range (‘eastern meadowlark’) are specialized and not fully predictable from the parts alone, so the relation is only partially transparent.
Etymology
Sturnella magna comes from Latin words: Sturnella is a little 'starling' and magna means 'large', so the name paints a picture of a big, starling-like bird. That's why it fits the bright, yellow meadowlark found in eastern North America.