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missdaredevil
Joined: 08 Dec 2004
Posts: 1670
Location: Ask me
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 Posted: Sat Sep 22, 2007 4:20 am Post subject: bird of prey |
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secretary bird=a large long-legged* bird of prey* that has gray-and-black feathers and a crest projecting from the back of its head and which feeds mainly on snakes. Native to: Africa.
So is that a bird that hunts other animals or being hunted by others?
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Bob S.
Joined: 29 Apr 2004
Posts: 1767
Location: So. Cal
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| Posted: Sat Sep 22, 2007 8:18 am Post subject: |
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| The bird hunts other animals for food. In this case, snakes are the bird's prey. |
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CP
Joined: 12 Jun 2006
Posts: 2875
Location: California
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| Posted: Sat Sep 22, 2007 8:35 am Post subject: |
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The secretary bird has long legs, so is described as long-legged. And it is a predator, so is called a bird of prey.
If you use Google Images and type in "secretary bird," you'll see lots of pictures of them.
I never thought about it before, but "bird of prey" could be confusing to the non-native speaker. It might just as easily mean "bird that is prey" as "bird that hunts prey." And we don't use the term for other animals. We don't say that lions are cats of prey!
English is a funny language.
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You live a new life for every new language you speak. -Czech proverb |
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missdaredevil
Joined: 08 Dec 2004
Posts: 1670
Location: Ask me
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| Posted: Sat Sep 22, 2007 6:51 pm Post subject: |
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| Yes, English can be confusing, and sometimes in an amusing way. ha |
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