English
lyrebird
From lyre + bird, so named because of the beautiful tail feathers of the male of one species, the superb lyrebird (Menura novaehollandiae), which can be erected to look like a lyre.
The story
From lyre + bird, so named because of the beautiful tail feathers of the male of one species, the superb lyrebird (Menura novaehollandiae), which can be erected to look like a lyre.
Today it means
noun Either of two large ground-dwelling Australian songbirds, of the genus Menura, notable for their extraordinary ability to mimic natural and artificial sounds from their environment.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / lyrebird