bird louse
- noun
- /bɜrd laʊs/
- Specialized
:
piojo de ave
- A bird louse can cause irritation and feather damage in affected birds.
Examples
-
The veterinarian discovered a bird louse infestation among the chickens.
-
Many bird lice infest nests in the spring.
-
Researchers studied how the bird louse adapts to different species of hosts.
-
A bird louse can cause discomfort to its host.
-
A bird louse can cause irritation and feather damage in affected birds.
-
The veterinarian discovered a bird louse infestation among the chickens.
-
Many bird lice infest nests in the spring.
Synonyms
3
6.7
A small insect that lives on hair or fur and drinks blood
A small wingless insect that lives on birds and eats their feathers and skin
Small insects that live on birds and some mammals and eat skin, feathers or hair
A small insect that lives on chickens and other birds and eats their blood
A small insect that lives on chickens' feathers and causes itching
Surface Forms
Morphology
The noun is fully compositional: 'bird' + 'louse' straightforwardly denotes a louse that lives on or parasitizes birds, so the meaning is directly derivable from the constituents. This kind of compound noun follows common cross-linguistic patterns and would be obvious to a B1 learner who knows both words.
Etymology
Bird louse comes from the simple picture of a small insect, the louse, living on a bird and biting its feathers, which makes the bird itchy. So, it means 'a small parasite that lives on birds'.