Sapsuckers

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A type of bird known for feeding on tree sap by drilling holes into the bark
2. Referring to various woodpeckers that extract sap from trees, often impacting the plant's health
3. Commonly associated with species like the yellow-bellied sapsucker, which is noted for its distinctive feeding habits

Etymology: The "sapsucker" is named for its habit: it drills rows of small holes into tree bark and then returns to lap up the sap that oozes out, along with the insects drawn to it. The name is a plain compound of "sap," the watery fluid that moves through a tree, and "sucker," from Old English "sūcan," meaning to suck. "Sap" comes from Old English "sæp," and the sense of "sucker" as something that draws liquid in traces back to the same verb that gives us "suck." Because "sapsuckers" is simply the plural of "sapsucker," it refers to more than one of these woodpeckers. The bird's name is transparent in a way many animal names are not, so the word needs little more than its two parts to be understood.