Definitions
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- noun (Zoöl.) A small crested passerine bird (
Phaïnopepla nitens ), native of Mexico and the Southern United States. The adult male is of a uniform glossy blue-black; the female is brownish. Called alsoblack flycatcher .
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- noun A small crested
passerine bird , Phainopepla nitens.
Etymologies
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
Ancient Greek φαίνω ("shine") + πέπλος ("robe")
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Examples
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A black bird, a phainopepla, rocketed past and alighted on a trembling mesquite bush.
NPR Topics: News 2011
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Among the bird species found here are the sanguaro-inhabiting cactus wren (Calypte costae), black-tailed gnatcatcher (Polioptila melanura), phainopepla (Phainopepla nitens), Gila woodpecker (Melanerpes uropygualis), and Costa's hummingbird (Calypte costae).
Sonoran desert 2009
chained_bear commented on the word phainopepla
Bird. Male is shiny black; white wing patch conspicuous in flight. In both sexes, not distinct crest, long tail, red eyes. Juvenile resembles adult female, but has browner eyes; both have gray patches. Young males acquire patchy black in fall. Distinctive call note is a querulous, low-pitched, whistled *wurp?* Song is a warble, seldom heard. Flight is fluttery but direct, and often very high. Range: phainopeplas nest in early spring in mesquite brushlands, feeding chiefly on insects, mistletoe berries. In late spring they move into cooler, wetter habitat and raise a second brood. Rare postbreeding wanderers north and east of mapped range. Accidental in eastern North America. (_Field Guide to the Birds of North America_, 3rd Ed. Washington, D.C.: National Geographic, 1999, p. 364)
February 2, 2007