What does courlan mean?
The courlan is a large, long-legged wading bird native to the wetlands of tropical and subtropical America, better known to most English speakers by its alternative name, the limpkin. Scientifically classified as Aramus guarauna and placed in its own family, Aramidae, it has brownish plumage marked with white streaks and spots, and a long bill with a slight curve that is specially suited to prying open apple snails, its principal food. The courlan is best known for its loud, mournful, wailing cry, which carries far across swamps at night and dawn; this haunting voice led to one of its folk names, the "crying bird." Its slow, uneven, almost limping walk inspired yet another common name. Found from Florida through the Caribbean and Central and South America, the courlan occupies a distinctive place in the region's wetland ecology and folklore.
nounA large, long-legged wading bird (Aramus guarauna) of tropical American marshes and swamps, also known as the limpkin, with brown plumage streaked and spotted with white and a long, slightly curved bill adapted for extracting apple snails.
- The limpkin (Aramus guarauna), a crane-like wading bird of the American tropics and subtropics, especially noted for its plaintive cry and its diet of apple snails.
"At dawn the mournful cry of a courlan echoed across the Florida swamp."
"Birdwatchers rose before sunrise to hear the courlan's haunting call carry over the wetlands."
"With its long, slightly curved bill, the courlan pries apple snails from their shells with remarkable skill."
Standard regular plural; used both for multiple individual birds and generically for the species.
"Courlans gathered along the shallow edges of the lagoon at dusk."
The courlan's eerie, wailing call once earned it the name 'crying bird' — and it walks with such an odd, jerky gait that English speakers simply called it the 'limpkin.'
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of courlan
The word "courlan" entered English in the eighteenth century, borrowed from French "courlan," a name applied to the bird in the Caribbean. The ultimate origin lies in an indigenous Caribbean language, transmitted through French colonial usage, though the exact source word is not securely documented. It shares its naming history with related French terms for wading birds of the West Indies.
How courlan is actually used
"Courlan" is chiefly used in ornithological and regional contexts, particularly in the Caribbean and Latin America; "limpkin" is the more common English name in North America.
Easily confused with courlan
A crane is any of various large long-necked wading birds of the family Gruidae, whereas the courlan (limpkin) is a single species in its own family, Aramidae, named for its limping gait.