bowerbird

noun

bow·​er·​bird ˈbau̇(-ə)r-ˌbərd 

: any of a family (Ptilonorhynchidae) of passerine birds of Australia and New Guinea in which the male builds a chamber or passage arched over with twigs and grasses, often adorned with bright-colored objects, and used especially to attract the female

Example Sentences

Recent Examples on the Web

In the forests of Australia, the male great bowerbird uses the same effect to woo his mate. —Ed Yong, Discover Magazine, 19 Jan. 2012

In nearly every species of bowerbird, males impress females by building elaborate structures called bowers: long, twiggy corridors that open to a courtyard decorated with small objects. —Kat Mcgowan, Discover Magazine, 10 July 2012

Ochre decoration requires far more complicated cognitive processes than, for example, an Australasian bowerbird arranging sparkling glass and other baubles around its nest to attract a mate. —Agustín Fuentes, Discover Magazine, 28 Feb. 2020

The bowerbird, which lives on the east coast of Australia, has an abiding eye for anything blue. —Chris Wheatley, Longreads, 5 Jan. 2023

Here is a nest built by a satin bowerbird (Amblyornis inornata) and decorated with blue flowers, berries, and bits of plastic. —Discover Magazine, 8 Nov. 2011

This chromatic fealty is less a matter of design sense than of courtship; the behavior is just one of the bowerbird’s mating tactics. —Chris Wheatley, Longreads, 5 Jan. 2023

After all, the bowerbird’s behaviour has only just been discovered. —Ed Yong, Discover Magazine, 19 Jan. 2012

The great bowerbird is both architect and illusionist. —Ed Yong, Discover Magazine, 23 Dec. 2010

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Word History

First Known Use

1841, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

bowerbird

noun

bow·​er·​bird ˈbau̇(-ə)r-ˌbərd 

: any of various birds of Australia and New Guinea of which the male builds a chamber or passage arched over with twigs and branches and often ornamented with bright-colored objects especially to attract the female