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bunting

(Encyclopedia)bunting, common name for small, plump birds of the family Fringillidae (finch family). Among the American buntings are the indigo bunting, in which the summer plumage of the male reflects sunlight as ...

camass

(Encyclopedia)camass or camas both: kămˈəs [key], any species of the genus Camassia (or Quamasia), hardy North American plants of the family Lilaceae (lily family), chiefly of moist places in the far West, where...

Pembroke Welsh corgi

(Encyclopedia)Pembroke Welsh corgi, breed of short-legged, hardy working dog thought to have been introduced into South Wales by Flemish immigrants in the early 12th cent. It stands from 10 to 12 in. (25.4–30.5 c...

camellia

(Encyclopedia)camellia kəmēlˈyə [key] [for G. J. Kamel, a Moravian Jesuit missionary], any plant of the genus Camellia in the tea family, evergreen shrubs or small trees native to Asia but now cultivated extens...

Berlin, Sir Isaiah

(Encyclopedia)Berlin, Sir Isaiah, 1909–97, English political scientist, b. Riga, Latvia (then in Russia). His family moved to St. Petersburg when he was a boy and emigrated to London in 1921. He was educated at O...

border terrier

(Encyclopedia)border terrier, breed of hardy, medium-sized terrier developed in the Border districts of N England in the 18th and 19th cent. It stands about 12 in. (30 cm) high at the shoulder and weighs from 131�...

asphodel

(Encyclopedia)asphodel ăsˈfədĕlˌ [key], name for plants of several genera of the family Lilaceae (lily family). The true asphodels belong to two small and very similar genera (Asphodelus and Asphodeline) of th...

Dandie Dinmont terrier

(Encyclopedia)Dandie Dinmont terrier dănˈdē dĭnˈmŏnt [key], breed of hardy, long-bodied terrier developed in England and Scotland and first recorded as a distinct type in the very early 18th cent. It stands f...

Sverre

(Encyclopedia)Sverre svĕˈrə [key], d. 1202, king of Norway (1184–1202). He claimed to be the illegitimate son of King Sigurd; the question of his paternity is still disputed. He spent his childhood in the Faer...

sweet potato

(Encyclopedia)sweet potato, trailing perennial plant (Ipomoea batatas) of the family Convolvulaceae (morning glory family), native to the New World tropics. Cultivated from ancient times by the Aztecs for its edibl...