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wading bird
noun
: any of an order (Ciconiiformes) of long-legged birds (such as herons, bitterns, storks, and ibises) that wade in water in search of food
Examples of wading bird in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The park is an excellent place to observe wading birds and shorebirds and introduces nature lovers to the island's plants and animals.
—Nora Colomer, Fox News, 14 May 2024
The squishy mud that gives wading birds the otherworldly appearance of walking on water in the shallows of Florida Bay also gives the flamingos a measure of protection from human contact.
—Alex Harris, Miami Herald, 25 Apr. 2024
The park is also a great spot to see wading birds such as herons, egrets and ibis.
—Emma Janssen, Miami Herald, 26 Feb. 2024
Less rain also concentrates wildlife at watering holes, boosting your odds of spotting the Everglades’ iconic alligators and wading birds like the bright-pink roseate spoonbill.
—Sarah L. Stewart, Travel + Leisure, 19 Oct. 2023
The trails running through Sea Pines Forest Preserve are particularly pretty and include wetland boardwalks over marshes full of wading birds, scenic bridges, and places to stop for a picnic or toss out a fishing line from a dock.
—Terry Ward, Travel + Leisure, 26 Aug. 2023
Wood storks are long-legged, wading birds that can stand more than 4-feet tall when fully-grown.
—Drew Kann, ajc, 18 Sep. 2023
Flamingos, a wading bird, are the last species bird watchers would have predicted.
—Julia Jacobo, ABC News, 5 Sep. 2023
Native to Florida, historians say they were decimated by the plume trade in the late 1800s and early 1900s, like many wading birds, but have been seen more often in recent decades.
—Dinah Voyles Pulver, USA TODAY, 4 Sep. 2023
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'wading bird.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
First Known Use
1840, in the meaning defined above
Dictionary Entries Near wading bird
Cite this Entry
“Wading bird.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/wading%20bird. Accessed 28 May. 2024.
Kids Definition
wading bird
noun
: any of various long-legged birds (as herons, storks, and ibises) that wade in water in search of food
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