B220 words · Upper-intermediate

Wild Animals vocabulary — B2

Advanced bird and insect vocabulary that names less common species like the albatross, kestrel, partridge and wren alongside creatures such as the scorpion and the mantis.

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Words in this set

albatross
/ˈælbəˌtrɑs/
An ocean bird with the longest wings of any, gliding for days without landing.
Example: An albatross followed the ship for a week and never once flapped.
buzzard
/ˈbʌzərd/
A broad-winged bird of prey that mews like a cat while circling.
Example: There's a buzzard over that field most afternoons.
crane
/kreɪn/
A very tall grey wading bird that dances to win over a mate.
Example: Two cranes were leaping and bowing at each other in the marsh.
goldfinch
/ˈɡoʊldˌfɪntʃ/
A small bird with a red face and a broad gold band across each wing.
Example: A charm of goldfinches worked its way along the thistles.
jay
/dʒeɪ/
A pinkish woodland bird with a flash of blue on the wing that buries acorns.
Example: A jay screeched and every other bird in the wood went quiet.
kestrel
A small falcon that hangs in one spot above a roadside verge, head dead still.
Example: There's a kestrel on that stretch of the motorway every single day.
lark
/lɑrk/
A brown field bird that sings without pause while climbing high into the sky.
Example: A lark went up and kept going until we couldn't see it at all.
partridge
/ˈpɑrtrədʒ/
A round grey game bird that would rather run than fly when disturbed.
Example: A covey of partridges legged it up the tramline ahead of the dog.
pheasant
/ˈfɛzənt/
A long-tailed game bird whose male is copper-bright with a white collar.
Example: A pheasant wandered into the road and refused to accept the car existed.
starling
/ˈstɑrlɪŋ/
A dark speckled bird that gathers in swirling thousands at dusk.
Example: We drove out to the pier to watch the starlings come in.
wren
/rɛn/
A tiny brown scrap of a bird with its tail cocked straight up.
Example: For something that small a wren makes an absurd amount of noise.
millipede
A slow round many-legged creature that curls into a tight coil when touched.
Example: A millipede rolled up into a perfect spiral in my palm.
scorpion
/ˈskɔrpiən/
A desert creature with pincers and a curved stinging tail held over its back.
Example: You shake your boots out every morning or you find a scorpion the hard way.
mantis
/ˈmæntɪs/
A green insect that waits with its front legs folded as though praying.
Example: A mantis sat on the mosquito net all night without moving once.
locust
/ˈloʊkəst/
A grasshopper that swarms in millions and strips a whole region bare.
Example: The locusts came through and there was nothing green left standing.
aphid
/ˈæfəd/
A tiny sap-sucking pest that covers new rose shoots in a green fuzz.
Example: Every bud on that bush is solid with aphids.
earwig
A brown insect with a pair of pincers at its back end.
Example: An earwig dropped out of the dahlia and straight down my sleeve.
firefly
/ˈfaɪərˌflaɪ/
A beetle that flashes a cold light in the dark to attract a mate.
Example: The whole treeline was full of fireflies blinking on and off together.
silkworm
/ˈsɪlkwərm/
The young of a moth whose cocoon is unwound to make fine cloth.
Example: It takes something like two thousand silkworms to make one dress.
tarantula
/təˈræntʃulə/
A big hairy spider that people keep as a pet and fear anyway.
Example: He let the tarantula walk up his arm and I had to look away.