Cereopsis
suh-ree-OP-sis
Genus
The wax-faced one — named for the conspicuous, pale, waxy cere covering the bill and forehead of the Cape Barren Goose
Literally: wax-appearance; wax-face
| Part | Meaning | Language | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| cere- | wax | Latin (cer, =a, -e, -i) | Refers to the cere, the fleshy waxy covering at the base of the bill, which is strikingly large and greenish in this bird |
| -opsis | appearance; face; sight | Greek (opsi, -o / =ops) | Very common terminal element in genus names meaning 'having the appearance/face of' |
A noun compound formed from Latin cere- (wax) and Greek -opsis (appearance, face). The two elements are joined directly without a connecting vowel, as -opsis begins with a vowel. The result is a standalone genus name treated as a feminine Latin noun. This is a Graeco-Latin hybrid, mixing Latin cere- with Greek -opsis, which was common in 19th-century nomenclature but is technically irregular by modern coining conventions. No species epithet is present; Cereopsis stands alone as the genus name.
Pronunciation
- suh-ree-OP-sis Penult stress, rule 5: the penult vowel 'o' is short but followed by two consonants (p+s), so the penult syllable is stressed.
Commonly: SEE-ree-op-sis (common in ornithological usage, carrying a long first syllable, but formally incorrect; the stress belongs on the penult)
Other readings
cere- could theoretically derive from the Latin mythological form cere / Ceres (goddess of agriculture), but the ornithological context — the bird's prominent waxy bill covering — makes the 'wax' reading overwhelmingly more likely.
Cereopsis novaehollandiae (Latham, 1801) is the Cape Barren Goose, the sole living species in this genus. The genus was formally described by Vieillot (1816). The name is a Graeco-Latin hybrid: Latin cere- + Greek -opsis. Both dictionary senses of cere (id 1148: 'wax' and id 1161: 'wax; goddess of agriculture') were found; the 'wax' reading is correct in this ornithological context. The suffix -opsis (from opsi, -o, id 4353, and =ops, id 4352) is confirmed in the dictionary as Greek for 'appearance; sight; face'.