Hello! My daughter is doing a class project on the Downy Woodpecker and needs to put in the phonetic spelling of the scientific name so her classmates will be able to pronounce it. Could anyone who knows, please help? Also, pronunciations that are described phonetically would be more helpful than the dictionary-type pronunciation guide that directly follows the word. Thanks so much!! I'm not really sure which section to put this in, so I'm going to choose Science and Language and perhaps homework. Sorry if it seems over-posted, we are desperate and she only has another half hour!
2006-11-19 12:43:29 · 2 answers · asked by BetchaBiteAChip 2 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Zoology
The Downy Woodpecker is Picoides pubescens. As scientific names go, this is a pretty easy one to pronounce. The genus name (the first of the two words) is pronounced "Pick-oid'-eez", with the accent on the 2nd syllable. The specific name (the second word) is pronounced just like the english word "pubescent", except with a final "z" sound replacing the final "t" sound. "pyoob-es'-enz", accent on the 2nd syllable.
"Picus" is Latin for "woodpecker". The suffix "-oides" means "resembling, or shaped like". "Pubescens" means "hairy" or "downy". Therefore, the scientific name in its entirety literally means "a downy, woodpecker-like bird".
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2006-11-19 12:52:15 · answer #1 · answered by PaulCyp 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Picoides pubescens pronounced "pick~coid~dees pew~bes~sins" Does that help any?
2006-11-19 12:48:42 · answer #2 · answered by Scarabia 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋