secretary bird

American  

noun

1. a large, long-legged, raptorial bird, Sagittarius serpentarius, of Africa, that feeds on reptiles.

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secretary bird British  

noun

1. a large African long-legged diurnal bird of prey, Sagittarius serpentarius, having a crest and tail of long feathers and feeding chiefly on snakes: family Sagittariidae, order Falconiformes (hawks, falcons, etc)

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Etymology

Origin of secretary bird

1790–1800; < French secrétaire, perhaps by folk etymology < Sudanese Arabic ṣagr al-ṭēr, equivalent to ṣagr hawk + al the + ṭēr birds (collective)

Example Sentences

Picture a sea of chest-high elephant grass, swirling brown rivers, ribbons of papyrus and the occasional black-and-white secretary bird swooping elegantly through rose-colored skies.

From New York Times • Sep. 4, 2012

A secretary bird stalking along looks as big as a man, and an ostrich attains the altitude of a church-steeple.

From The Young Yagers A Narrative of Hunting Adventures in Southern Africa by Reid, Mayne

"Oh, what is a secretary bird?" interrupted Franz.

From The Swiss Family Robinson or, Adventures on a Desert Island by Wyss, Jean Rudolph

Here, for the first time, I saw the secretary bird, known to the Arabs as the "Devil's horse."

From The Nile tributaries of Abyssinia, and the sword hunters of the Hamran arabs by Baker, Samuel White, Sir

Adjutant, the nickname of the solemn Indian stork, is clearly due to Mr Atkins, and the secretary bird is so named because some of his head feathers suggest a quill pen behind an ear.

From The Romance of Words (4th ed.) by Weekley, Ernest