Culicicapa
koo-lih-SIH-kuh-puh
Genus
mosquito catcher (a bird that catches gnats or mosquitoes)
Literally: gnat-catcher
| Part | Meaning | Language | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| culici- | a gnat; a mosquito | Latin (culex, culic) | genitive stem culicis → combining form culici-; culex is the standard Latin word for a biting gnat or mosquito |
| -capa | one who catches or takes; a catcher | Latin (capio) | from Latin capio 'to take, seize, catch'; -capa used as a New Latin agent-noun suffix in ornithological genera (e.g. Muscicapa 'fly-catcher'); not entered as a combining form in the dictionary |
A compound New Latin noun formed from the Latin genitive stem culici- (of culex, a gnat/mosquito) plus the New Latin agent-noun element -capa (catcher, from capio). The whole word functions as a single noun and serves as the genus name. The same -capa element appears in Muscicapa (fly-catcher) and Ficedula. The genus comprises small insectivorous Old World flycatchers that feed on gnats and other small flying insects.
Pronunciation
- koo-lih-SIH-kuh-puh Five syllables: cu-li-ci-ca-pa. Penult (ca) has a short vowel followed by a single consonant p, so stress falls on the antepenult (ci), the third syllable. The c before i is soft (= s); the c before a is hard (= k); final -a = 'uh'.
Commonly: kuː-lɪ-SIH-kuh-puh (same stress; the initial syllable is sometimes rendered 'kyoo' in English)
Other readings
culici- could theoretically be parsed as culic- 'gnat' + -i- connecting vowel, which is equivalent and more explicit, but the boundary is the same.
The root -capa (from Latin capio, to catch) is not entered in the dictionary as a combining form but is well established in ornithological New Latin; confidence is high from general knowledge and parallel usage in Muscicapa. The dictionary matches culic- (= culex, a gnat) at position 0–5, which is the correct reading; the longer match 'culicicapa' yields no single dictionary entry. Culicicapa is a small genus of flycatchers (family Stenostiridae) found in South and Southeast Asia.