Columbia Encyclopedia

(Encyclopedia) godwit: see shore bird.

(Encyclopedia) finfoot, bird: see sun grebe.

(Encyclopedia)  CE5 Analogy in bird and insect wings analogy, in biology, the similarities in function, but differences in evolutionary origin, of body structures in different organisms. For example, the wing of ...

(Encyclopedia) parakeet or parrakeet, common name for a widespread group of small parrots, native to the Indo-Malayan region and popular as cage birds. Parakeets have long, pointed tails, unlike the chunky lovebirds...

(Encyclopedia) honey badger or ratel rātˈəl [key], carnivore, Mellivora capensis, of the forest and brush country of Africa, the Middle East, and India; it is a member of the badger and skunk family. Related to t...

(Encyclopedia) crane, large wading bird found in marshes in the Northern Hemisphere and in Africa. Although sometimes confused with herons, cranes are more closely related to rails and limpkins. Cranes are known for...

(Encyclopedia) English sparrow or house sparrow, small bird, Passer domesticus, common throughout most of the world. English sparrows are 4 to 7 in. (10–18 cm) long, with short, stout bills. The male is brown with...

(Encyclopedia) indigo bunting or indigo bird: see bunting. ...

(Encyclopedia) chickadee chĭkˈədēˌ [key], small North American bird of the titmouse family. The black-capped chickadee (Parus atricapillus), lively and gregarious, is a permanent resident over most of its range...

(Encyclopedia) stilt, common name for some members of the family Recurvirostridae, shore birds including the avocet. Stilts, as their name implies, have the longest legs of any bird except the flamingo. They frequen...