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dust-bathe

American  
[duhst-bayth] / ˈdʌstˌbeɪð /

verb (used without object)

Animal Behavior.
dust-bathed, dust-bathing
  1. (of a bird) to squat in dusty soil and fluff dust through the plumage: probably performed to combat ectoparasites.


Example Sentences

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Wednesday's Facebook Live broadcast apparently showed the sun rising behind four elephants grazing and dust-bathing rather than splashing in the river.

From Fox News ● Mar. 25, 2020

Of course, many green-minded consumers prefer eggs from uncaged hens precisely because of things that reduce their efficiency as egg layers: the freedom to exercise and engage in natural behaviors such as nesting and dust-bathing.

From Washington Post ● Jun. 1, 2010

“She wasn’t in with her chicks.... Mom found her dust-bathing under the blueberries. She never did anything like...whatever they did. But Mom shut her in a crate and told Gregory she has to go.”

From "Unusual Chickens for the Exceptional Poultry Farmer" by Kelly Jones

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