Definitions
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- n. Either of two pigeonlike shore birds (Chionia alba or C. minor) of Antarctic regions, having white plumage and a horny covering on the base of the bill.
Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- n. A sea-bird of the family Chionididæ. There are two species, Chionis alba, in which the sheath is flat like a cere, and C. (or Chionarchus) minor, in which the sheath rises up like the pommel of a saddle. Both inhabit high southern latitudes, as the Falkland Islands and Kerguelen Land; the plumage is pure-white, and the size is that of a large pigeon. They are known to sailors as kelp-pigeon and sore-eyed pigeon.
Wiktionary
- n. Either of two species of scavenging birds in the family Chionididae which breed only on the Antarctic Peninsula and subantarctic islands.
GNU Webster's 1913
- n. (Zoöl.) Either one of two species of birds composing the genus Chionis, and family
Chionidæ , native of the islands of the Antarctic seas.
Etymologies
- From sheath + bill (Wiktionary)
Examples
“Mr Meldrum said it was what was called a sheathbill, and not good for eating, which made Frank regret all the more having killed it, especially when its mate hopped up to him presently -- as if asking him why he had shot her husband!”
“American sheathbill (Chionis alba); south polar skua (Catharacta maccormicki); brown skua (Catharacta lonnbergi); southern black-backed gull (Larus dominicanus); and,”
“These, with five wild ducks -- Mr Lathrope bringing down a pair right and left, on their way back, in a fashion which amply retrieved his character as a shot, and Frank securing the odd one -- were the nett result of the day's sport, in addition to the little sheathbill; and the shooting party returned to the house under the cliff as well satisfied with their own prowess as the home party were to welcome them, especially as they were now so plentifully provided with what all had been longing for since the last sheep had been washed overboard the”
“On Marion Island, for example, the numbers of the island’s only land bird – the lesser sheathbill – have dropped, and the introduced house mouse is suspected of out-competing the bird species for food.”
Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘sheathbill’.
-
birds
birds with singular names from
at least 9 English dictionariesaasvogel, aberdevine, accentor, accipiter, aepyornis, agami, albatross, alcatras, alcid, alcidine, amadavat, amokura and 1056 more...
-
Still More Bird Wirds
A work in progress....Birds from around the world (other than endemic to North America).
barbet, hornbill, trogon, bee-eater, bristlehead, wren-babbler, stubtail, blackeye, bush warbler, cassowary, bowerbird, bird-of-paradise and 723 more...
Tweets
Looking for tweets for sheathbill.
Comments
No comments yet...
Log in or sign up to get involved in the conversation. It's quick and easy.