painted bunting
painted bunting Lexical Profile
• noun
North American A small, brightly colored seed-eating bird (Passerina ciris) of the cardinal family, native to North America. The adult male is renowned for its striking plumage of bright blue, green, and red, while females and juveniles are primarily bright green.
"During our spring birdwatching trip in Texas, we were thrilled to spot a male painted bunting singing from the dense coastal brush."
Word Nuance & Usage
In formal ornithological literature, the common name is often capitalized as Painted Bunting, though general dictionaries and publications typically use lowercase.
• Nearby Words
Word Origin & Etymology
The term combines 'painted', referring to the male's vibrant, multi-colored plumage that appears as if applied by a brush, with 'bunting', a traditional Middle English term (bountyng) for various small, stout-billed, seed-eating birds.