wattlebird

English

Wikispecies

(1) Anthochaera carunculata, red wattlebird
(2) Callaeas wilsoni, kokako

Etymology

From wattle +‎ bird.

Noun

wattlebird (plural wattlebirds)

  1. Any of a group of Australian birds in the genus Anthochaera of the honeyeater family Meliphagidae. [from 19th c.]
    • 1865, John Gould, Handbook to The Birds of Australia, volume 1, page 434:
      In Hobart Town it is frequently exposed for sale in the markets with Bronzewing Pigeons and Wattlebirds, where it is known by the name of Ground-Dove, an appellation which has doubtless been given both from its habit of running and feeding upon the ground like the Pigeons […]
    • 2015, Charlotte Wood, The Natural Way of Things, Allen & Unwin 2018, p. 285:
      Outside in the evening a wattlebird wrenches pieces from the brush tree at the end of the veranda.
  2. Any of three birds in the family Callaeidae, endemic to New Zealand.

Derived terms
  • brush wattlebird
  • little wattlebird
  • red wattlebird
  • western wattlebird
  • yellow wattlebird
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