Pezoporus
pe-ZO-por-us
Genus
ground-walker (a parrot that moves on foot)
Literally: foot-passage; one who travels on foot
| Part | Meaning | Language | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| pezo- | the foot, bottom; on foot | Greek (pez, =a, -i, -o) | combining form pezo-; from Greek pezos, 'pedestrian, going on foot' |
| -o- | connecting vowel | standard Greek connecting vowel; here absorbed into pezo- | |
| -porus | a passage, way, means of crossing; a traveler | Greek (πόρος (poros)) | Greek πόρος 'passage, ford, route' is not in the dictionary as a separate entry from por- 'callus/soft stone'; the Latin =porus 'pore' is a cognate but a different word. In biological compound names -porus regularly reflects Greek πόρος 'passage/traveler', as in Macroporus, Pezoporus. Marked not-in-dictionary for the 'passage/traveler' sense. |
A Greek compound noun used as a Latin masculine nominative singular genus name. Pezo- (adverbial/adjectival stem, 'on foot') modifies -porus ('traveler, one who makes a passage'), giving the sense 'one who travels on foot.' The name alludes to the strongly terrestrial habits of the Ground Parrot and Night Parrot (family Psittaculidae), which spend most of their time walking on the ground rather than perching in trees.
Pronunciation
- pe-ZO-por-us Four syllables: pe-zo-por-us. Penult 'por' has a short vowel followed by a single consonant (r) before the final syllable; penult is therefore light, so stress moves to the antepenult 'zo': pe-ZO-por-us.
Other readings
pezo- 'foot' + Latin porus 'pore/opening' — grammatically possible but biologically nonsensical; rejected in favour of Greek πόρος 'passage/traveler'
The 'passage/traveler' sense of Greek πόρος (poros) is not listed as a separate entry in the dictionary; the dictionary's por- entry gives only 'soft stone; blind; a callus' (a different Greek word, πῶρος). The biological compound sense -porus = 'traveler/one who passes' is well established in zoological nomenclature (cf. Macroporus, Gymnoporus) and is used here from general knowledge, with high confidence. Pezoporus was erected by Martin Lichtenstein in 1818 for the Ground Parrot (Pezoporus wallicus); the Night Parrot (P. occidentalis) was later added to the genus.