Oreotrochilus
or-ee-oh-TROK-il-us
Genus
mountain hummingbird
Literally: mountain small-bird
| Part | Meaning | Language | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| oreo- | a mountain | Greek (ore, -o) | combining form oreo- before consonant |
| trochil- | a pulley; a very small bird | Greek (trochil) | in classical use trochilus denoted a tiny bird (variously the wren or plover); Linnaeus applied Trochilus to hummingbirds, making it the standard root for that family |
| -us | Latin nominative singular masculine ending | Latin | standard genus-name termination |
A compound Greek noun latinized with the nominative ending -us, used as a genus name (masculine). Oreo- is the combining form of oros 'mountain', joined directly to trochilus 'small bird / hummingbird'. No epithet is present; this is a genus name only.
Pronunciation
- or-ee-oh-TROK-il-us Six syllables: or-ee-oh-TROCH-il-us. Penult 'il' has a short vowel followed by a single consonant, so stress falls on the antepenult 'troch'.
Other readings
One could read troch- (wheel) + -ilus (diminutive), but the dictionary attests trochil as a single entry meaning 'a very small bird', making that the far more economical and contextually appropriate reading.
Oreotrochilus is a genus of Andean hummingbirds known as hillstars, perfectly matching the etymology 'mountain small-bird'. The root trochil carries a double meaning in the dictionary ('a pulley' and 'a very small bird'); the ornithological context makes 'very small bird' the unambiguous choice. The -us ending is a Latin nominative masculine termination conventionally applied to latinized Greek genus names.