The avian world is filled with complex Latin or Greek words and terms describing a certain behavior or feature. In the years I have obsessed over birds, I have read countless dictionaries and bird books, finding words regarding anatomy, or simply the way a bird catches an insect (although, really, why do birds get a special name for their butt?). You probably encountered a couple of them in past posts and wondered what on Earth are they talking about? That is why I am introducing the Missoula Bird Nerd Glossary, a page filled with bird-words you may not know and likely never used in a sentence. I am also including a section for the many birds names people like me and you use, not Cornell scientists. Canada Jay? Nope, it’s a camp robber, whisky-jack, kisirallerr. Wigeon? Not anymore, it’s a baldpate, qatkelliq. In the following entries, I hope you encounter whimsical words and quirky collective nouns. Enjoy.
PART ONE : THOSE OTHER NAMES
Nearly eleven thousand species of birds are found across seven continents and five oceans. With all these birds and thousands of cultures, many birds are called by different names than what a professional ornithologist would use. This section is dedicated to those names, and I will constantly be updating the page with more names from around the world. If there is a nickname not listed, please let me know in the comments and I will add it as soon as possible.
American Dipper
Water ouzel, puyuqumaaraq, water thrush
American Kestrel
Sparrow hawk, killy hawk, grasshopper hawk
American Robin (Turdus migratorius)
Wandering thrush, “the migrating turd”, elagayuli
American Wigeon
Baldpate, cotton top, qatkelliq
Belted Kingfisher
Halcyon, neqaiq, rattler
Black-capped Chickadee
Bandit bird, tomtit, cikepiipiiq
Canada Goose
Cobra chicken, honker
Common Merganser
Goosander, sawbill, plunging goose, payirpak
Common Raven
Big crow, tulukaruk
Dark-eyed Junco
Snowbird
Gray Jay
Whiskyjack, camp robber, kisirallerr, moose bird, venison hawk
Great-horned Owl
Iggiayuli, hoot owl, tiger owl, winged tiger, five-hooter
Greater White-fronted Goose
Specklebelly, laughing goose, leqleq
Mallard
Greenhead, ukulkatagpak
Northern Harrier
Marsh hawk, hen harrier, frog hawk, qaku’urtaq
Northern Shrike
Kanguruaq, butcherbird, thorn bird
Osprey
River hawk, fish hawk, angllurayuli
Red-breasted Nuthatch
Qaneksuartuli, upside-down bird, nuthacker, nuthatcher
Red-tailed Hawk
Eskaviaq, chicken hawk, buzzard
Ruffed Grouse
Elciayuli, mountain pheasant, thunder-drum, ruffie
Spotted Sandpiper
Ikigcaqaq (the one that bends forward with its buttocks sticking out), tip-tail, teeter snipe
Tree Swallow
White-bellied Swallow, egugmelnguq
Tundra Swan
Whistling swan, qugyuk
Willow Ptarmigan
Snow chicken, ghost bird, hare-foot, aqesgiq
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Ussukasscengiiraq, butter butt
PART TWO : ANATOMICAL AND BEHAVIORAL TERMS (UGH, AGAIN WITH THE BIG WORDS!)
Seeing as birding is one of the most popular hobbies in the United States, sciencey people and collectors have created LOTS of words describing behavior, or plumage, or anything else that can have a name. This section is dedicated to all the bird-words you may or may not have ever used in a sentence.
Altricial
Adjective / all-tri-shul
Any bird chick (like a warbler or owl) fed and cared for in the nest for a long period of time
Brood
Noun / brood
All the young in a nest. Many birds can have multiple broods in a single year.
Cache
Noun / cash
A location where a bird stores food for later use
Cloaca
Noun / clo-ay-cah
Its where all the poop/pee (there is a fancy word for it you’ll learn about later) and eggs comes out, nothing fancy
Covert
Noun / cuh-vurt
A special term for the feathers covering the tail, the upper tail and under tail coverts
Hawk
Verb / hawk
a behavior in which a bird sees and insect, flies out to catch it, then returns to its perch, common in flycatchers
Lek
Noun / leck
A dance floor for mating grouse, where the males try to impress females by strutting around with fluffed up feathers
Mobbing
Verb / mob-ing
When multiple birds work together to annoy and drive away another animal. Mobbing is often directed to predators such as owls and hawks
Molt
Verb / mohlt
When a bird loses its feathers in order to regrow new ones
Pellet
Noun / peh-let
A ball of indigestible materials (fur, bones, shells, etc.) a bird throws up instead of pooping out
Preen
Verb / preen
The action of a bird cleaning its feathers and making them look nice
Precocial
Adjective / pre-co-shul
any bird chick (such as a duck or sandpiper) capable of hunting and walking and talking soon after hatching
Primary
Noun / pri-mare-ee
The feathers on the tip of the wing (most birds have ten primaries) which are often pointier than other feathers
Regurgitate
Verb / ree-grr-ji-tayt
A fancy word for throwing up. Most often used to describe the moment a bird pukes up a pellet, or when feeding young
Roost
Noun and verb / roost
Noun: a location where a bird (often an owl) shelters repeatedly, sometimes with more than one individual
Verb: when a bird settles into a place to shelter for the day/night
Secondary
Noun / Seh-cun-dayr-ee
The group of feathers in between the primaries and the body which are often round and short
Stoop
Noun / stoop
The high-speed dive of a hunting raptor. A stooping Peregrine can reach speeds of 200 miles per hour, the fastest of any animal on earth
Whitewash
Noun / white-wash
The pee/poop combo which comes out of the cloaca. Often used to locate owl roosts or nests
Zygodactyl
Adjective / zie-go-dak-tull
A talon arrangement found in parrots, woodpeckers, owls, and roadrunners where two toes face forward, one toe faces back, and one toe swivels, sometimes creating an x-shape
PART THREE : AVIAN COLLECTIVE NOUNS
Birds are known for their plumage, their flight, their songs, and their community. Vultures and hawks rise slowly in thermals, thousands of geese migrate in criss-crossing arrows, sparrows and finches congregate around feeders. The final section of this glossary is filled with parties of jays and chickadees, charms of hummingbirds and goldfinches, and coveys of quail and ptarmigan.
Eagle
Soar, colony, aerie
Blackbird
Cloud, cluster
Chickadee
Banditry, party
Cranes
Herd, sedge, siege
Curlew
Herd, curfew, salon
Crow
Murder
Dove
Bevy, flight, flock
Duck
Waddling, raft, team
Flamingo
Flamboyance
Goldfinch
Charm
Goose
Gaggle, wedge
Gull
Pack, swoop, flotilla, squabble
Hawk
Kettle, cast, boil
Heron
Flight, sedge, seige
Hummingbird
Shimmer, bouquet, charm
Jay
Party, band
Junco
Blizzard, flutter, chittering
Magpie
Mischief, tiding, parliament
Ostrich
Troop, herd
Owl
Parliament
Parrots
Pandemonium, company
Peacock
Muster, pride, ostentation
Penguin
Tuxedo, waddle, colony, raft, rookery
Pheasant
Bouquet, brood, brace, plump
Plover
Congregation, wing
Ptarmigan
Covey, invisibleness
Quail
Covey, bevy
Raven
Unkindness
Robin
Blush, worm, carol, riot
Snipe
Wisp
Sparrow
Host, ubiquity
Swallow
Gulp, flight, swoop, richness
Swan
Lamenation, wedge
Tern
Committee, colony, kettle
Warbler
Bouquet, confusion, fall
Wigeon
Coil, raft
Woodpecker
Descent, descension
Congratulations. You made it to the end. If you found a favorite term, please let me know in the comments.
Missoula Bird Nerds 