turnstone

American  

[turn-stohn] / ˈtɜrnˌstoʊn /

noun

1. any shorebird of the genus Arenaria, characterized by the habit of turning over stones in search of food.

2. British. ruddy turnstone.

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turnstone British  

/ ˈtɜːnˌstəʊn /

noun

1. either of two shore birds of the genus Arenaria , esp A. interpres ( ruddy turnstone ). They are related and similar to plovers and sandpipers

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Etymology

Origin of turnstone

First recorded in 1665–75; turn + stone

Example Sentences

Four UK shorebirds - the grey plover, dunlin, turnstone and curlew sandpiper - are becoming more endangered on the red list.

From BBC • Oct. 28, 2024

And a bird I want to add as a caveat: the ruddy turnstone.

From Scientific American • Jun. 5, 2020

The ruddy turnstone and bristle-thighed curlew fly more than 2,000 miles nonstop from Alaska to the Hawaiian islands on their way to the South Pacific.

From Time Magazine Archive

The plover of the plain is the turnstone, strepsilus interpres.

From Personal Memoirs of a Residence of Thirty Years with the Indian Tribes on the American Frontiers by Schoolcraft, Henry Rowe

The turnstone, when surrounded by comrades belonging to more energetic species, is a rather timorous bird; but it undertakes to keep watch for the security of the commonwealth when surrounded by smaller birds.

From Mutual Aid; a factor of evolution by Kropotkin, Petr Alekseevich, kniaz