flightless

[ flahyt-lis ]

adjective

1. incapable of flying:

   flightless birds such as the moa, rhea, and dodo.

flightless

/ ˈflaɪtlɪs /

adjective

1. (of certain birds and insects) unable to fly See also ratite

Word History and Origins

Origin of flightless¹

First recorded in 1870–75; flight ¹ + -less

Example Sentences

Take for example the puzzle of the flightless birds.

From Salon

Evidence suggests that the loss of flight evolved independently as many as six times, rather than just once, in the ancestors of different ratites — the group of flightless birds including the extinct moa and elephant birds as well as the ostrich, kiwi, cassowary, emu and rhea.

From Salon

“We’d see the same elements would get altered in multiple of these independent transitions to these flightless birds and it’s not only the same element,” Sackton explained.

From Salon

Rather, certain genes tend to accumulate in flightless birds, like clusters of modified elements of the genome.

From Salon

Keepers at Birdland in Bourton-on-the-Water, Gloucestershire, have been trying to breed the giant, flightless birds for more than 25 years.

From BBC