Columbia Encyclopedia

(Encyclopedia) Davis, Miles, 1926–91, American jazz musician, b. Alton, Ill. Rising to prominence with the birth of modern jazz in the mid-1940s, when he was a sideman in Charlie Parker's bop quintet, Davis became...

(Encyclopedia) secretary bird, common name for a long-legged African bird, Sagittarius serpentarius, related to the hawk and about 4 ft (122 cm) tall. Its crest of black feathers suggested the quill pens behind the ...

(Encyclopedia) Parker, Sir Gilbert, 1862–1932, Canadian novelist, b. Ontario. His novels and collections of tales usually deal either with the history of Canada or with England and the empire. Among his works are ...

(Encyclopedia) Vaughan, Sarah (Sarah Lois Vaughan), 1924–90, American jazz singer, b. Newark, N.J. Nicknamed “Sassie” and “the divine one,” she studied piano and organ, began singing in her church choir, a...

(Encyclopedia)  CE5 General anatomy of a bird bird, warm-blooded, egg-laying, vertebrate animal having its body covered with feathers and its forelimbs modified into wings, which are used by most birds for flight...

(Encyclopedia) elephant bird, extinct, flightless bird of the family Aepyornithidae. Once native to the island of Madagascar, these gigantic birds may have survived until as late as 1649. Today, they are known only ...

(Encyclopedia) man-o'-war bird or frigate-bird, most aerial of the water birds, found in the tropic seas. The man-o'-war bird's wingspread (71⁄2 ft/228.5 cm) is the largest in proportion to its body (3–4 lb/1.4�...

(Encyclopedia) Rollins, Sonny (Theodore Walter Rollins), 1930–, African-American tenor saxophonist and composer, b. New York City. A master of jazz improvisation, Ro...

(Encyclopedia) love bird: see parrot.

(Encyclopedia) mound bird: see megapode.