Rookery

Rook nest colony – rookery

A sea lion rookery at Monterey, California

A rookery is a colony of breeding animals, generally birds.^[1] A rook is a Northern European and Central Asian member of the crow family, which nest in prominent colonies (multiple nests) at the tops of trees.^[2] The term is applied to the nesting place of birds, such as crows and rooks, the source of the term. The breeding grounds of colony-forming seabirds and marine mammals (true seals or sea lions) and even some turtles are also referred to as rookeries.

The term rookery was also borrowed as a name for dense slum housing in nineteenth-century cities, and especially London.^[3]

Paleological evidence points to the existence of a pterodaustro rookery.^[4]

See also

• Auca Mahuevo, for a titanosaurid sauropod dinosaur rookery
• Bird colony

References

1. "Rookery". The Free Dictionary. Retrieved 24 May 2013.
2. "The Crow Family". Wild England. Retrieved 24 May 2013.
3. "History of the Seven Dials Area". Sevendials.com. Retrieved 2010-04-29.
4. "Discovery News ''New Pterosaur Fossils Reveal Diversity''". Dsc.discovery.com. Retrieved 2010-04-29.