verdin

noun

ver·​din ˈvər-dᵊn 

: a very small yellow-headed bird (Auriparus flaviceps) of arid scrubland that is related to the chickadee and is found from Texas to California and southward to Mexico

Examples of verdin in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

As the winner of the Plants for Birds category, the image demonstrates the relationship between the verdin and the flora in its native habitat. —Carlyn Kranking, Smithsonian Magazine, 28 June 2023

Plants for Birds Winner: Verdin In Tuscon, Arizona, amateur photographer Linda Scher saw her first verdin, a songbird that lives year-round in parts of the Southwestern U.S. and Mexico. —Carlyn Kranking, Smithsonian Magazine, 28 June 2023

Scher came back to the site about a month later and found the verdins gathering caterpillars to feed their young. —Carlyn Kranking, Smithsonian Magazine, 28 June 2023

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from French, "a green songbird of Indochina," alteration of verdon, verdun "bunting, yellowhammer," from vert "green" + -on, diminutive suffix — more at verdant

First Known Use

1881, in the meaning defined above