Podiceps (1 Viewer)

[Gonçalo Elias]

According to J. Jobling's excellent dictionary, the name Podiceps is explained as follows:

Podiceps / podiceps L. podex, podicis vent; pes foot. “Podiceps minor. Pied-bill Dopchick” of Catesby (1731) (Podilymbus).

My question is about podex and vent. I never really understood what vent means. It is not the same as belly, I think. Is there any synonym?

The reason I am asking is because I am trying to find the best translation into Portuguese.

 

[l_raty]

Is there any synonym?

The vent is the area around the cloaca, behind the legs and in front of the undertail coverts.
In French I'd use "bas-ventre" (lower belly) or "région anale" (anal region) to mean this.

 

[Gonçalo Elias]

Thanks Laurent, makes sense, in Portuguese we have "baixo ventre" which is similar to "bas-ventre".

Merci

 

[Taphrospilus]

And see Parts of a Bird: Feather Areas .

 

[Björn Bergenholtz]

Gonçalo, even if now maybe a bit superfluous ...

In short; vent = rump (the lower part of it).

In older days the Grebes Podicipedidae, and the Loons/Divers Gaviidae, were called Rump-footed Birds (see here, or/alt., more recently, here), because their feet were/are situated at the rear end of the body.

 

[Jim LeNomenclatoriste]

Do Podicis and pes have the same etymological root?

 

[l_raty]

Do Podicis and pes have the same etymological root?

Not that I can find.

Wiktionary:

• podex
• pes

 

[Gonçalo Elias]

Thanks all.