any of three oceanic seabirds constituting the genus Phaethon and family Phaethontidae, found in tropical regions, and having predominantly white…

= boatswain bird n. (b) at compounds 2. Cf. bosun, n. 2b. Now rare.

Any of various sea birds having long, pointed tail streamers. = tropicbird n. at tropic, n. adj.1compounds.

Originally Bermuda. The white-tailed tropicbird, Phaethon lepturus.

a tropicbird (genus Phaethon).

any of various, chiefly long-tailed, seabirds; esp. (a) the Arctic skua or parasitic jaeger, Stercorarius parasiticus (= sense 3a); (b) a…

(a) = boatswain bird n. (b) at boatswain, n. compounds 2 (cf. 2b); (b) = boatswain bird n. (a) at boatswain, n. compounds 2 (cf. 2b).

(a) a name for a tropic-bird, from its long tail-feathers; (b) the tail of a wig.

= boatswain, n. 3b. Cf. bosun bird n. at compounds 3. rare.