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Wildlife Words - diurnal

One of our new topics in 2008 will be “wildlife words” — please feel free to share your suggestions.

Our first word is…

diurnal

Pronunciation: \dī-ˈər-nəl\
Function: adjective
Etymology: Middle English, from Latin diurnalis — more at journal
Date: 14th century

1 a: recurring every day <diurnal tasks> b: having a daily cycle <diurnal tides>

2 a: of, relating to, or occurring in the daytime <the city’s diurnal noises> b: active chiefly in the daytime <diurnal animals> c: opening during the day and closing at night <diurnal flowers>

(Source: Merriam-Webster)

A diurnal animal is active during the daytime and rests at night. Many animals, particularly mammals, insects, and birds are diurnal.

This entry was posted on January 1, 2008 at 3:33 pm and is filed under Wildlife Words. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.

3 Responses to “Wildlife Words - diurnal”

  1. Wildlife Words - nocturnal « The Noah’s Pals Blog Says:
    May 5, 2008 at 3:45 pm

    [...] The Noah’s Pals Blog Learn about endangered and vulnerable animals. Play great games and win cool prizes. « Wildlife Words - diurnal [...]

  2. Wildlife Words - crepuscular « The Noah’s Pals Blog Says:
    May 5, 2008 at 3:56 pm

    [...] Words - crepuscular Our first two Wildlife Words were diurnal and nocturnal. The next word is [...]

  3. Wildlife Word - carnivorous « The Noah’s Pals Blog Says:
    May 5, 2008 at 4:15 pm

    [...] last set of Wildlife Words looked at the times of day when animals like to be active: diurnal (day) nocturnal (night) crepuscular (twilight) matutinal (dawn) vespertine [...]