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Yellow belly? Real, funnyQ. Dear Twig: "Yellow-bellied sapsucker." Is that a real bird? A.: Yep, it sure is. It's a small, shy woodpecker that lives in North America. And it sure has a funny name. Part of the name comes from how the bird feeds. It pecks holes in tree trunks and then eats or "sucks" up the sap that drips out. In fact it laps up the stuff with its tongue. So maybe its name should be saplapper. Ha! The name comes, too, from how the bird looks. It has indeed a yellow belly. OK, yellowish. Faintly yellowish. Definitely faintly yellowish. Plus yellowish, too, on the back and the chest. So maybe its name should be yellowish-bellied, -backed and -chested saplapper. Eh? Eh. The name of a bird is often a clue to what the bird does (like lapping/sucking sap), what it looks like (like having a sort of yellowish belly), where it lives, even who named it. For instance, what can you tell about the red-gartered coot, the Fiji whistler, the Mrs. Gould's sunbird, the nukupuu? Next: Beware the flying steamer duck! Ashy drongoly, Twig P.S. Like birds? Try a 4-H birdwatching project! 11/26/07 Date: 11/16/07 Advertisement
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