A genus of game birds in the grouse family, native to North America, including the ruffed grouse.
From New Latin, likely derived from a Native American language, though the exact origin is obscure. Bonasa entered scientific taxonomy in the 18th century as naturalists classified North American birds.
Bonasa is a perfect example of how Linnaeus and his followers borrowed from Native peoples—the ruffed grouse (Bonasa umbellus) may have a Latin scientific name, but it inherited a word tied to indigenous knowledge of American wildlife!
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