stonechat

[stohn-chat]

stone·chat

[stohn-chat]
noun
any of several small Old World birds, especially of the genus Saxicola, as S. torquata.

Origin:
1775–85; stone + chat, so called from its warning cry which sounds like a clash of stones
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Stonechat is always a great word to know.
So is ninnyhammer. Does it mean:
a fool or simpleton; ninny.
a stew of meat, vegetables, potatoes, etc.
Collins
World English Dictionary
stonechat (ˈstəʊnˌtʃæt)
 
n
an Old World songbird, Saxicola torquata, having a black plumage with a reddish-brown breast: subfamily Turdinae (thrushes)
 
[C18: so called from its cry, which sounds like clattering pebbles]

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Encyclopedia Britannica
Encyclopedia

stonechat

(species Saxicola torquata), Eurasian and African thrush (family Turdidae, order Passeriformes) named for its voice, which is said to sound like pebbles clicked together. In this species, 13 cm (5 inches) long, the male is black above, with white neck patch and a smudge of reddish colour on the white underparts; the female is brownish and dark-hooded. It is a ground nester, of flycatcher-like habits, found in overgrown pastures and coastal wastelands.

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Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
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