'Chaparral hen' definitions:

Definition of 'Chaparral hen'

From: GCIDE
  • Chaparral \Cha`par*ral"\, n. [Sp., fr. chaparro an evergeen oak.]
  • 1. A thicket of low evergreen oaks. [1913 Webster]
  • 2. An almost impenetrable thicket or succession of thickets of thorny shrubs and brambles. [1913 Webster]
  • Chaparral cock; fem. Chaparral hen (Zool.), a bird of the cuckoo family (Geococcyx Californianus), noted for running with great speed. It ranges from California to Mexico and eastward to Texas; -- called also {road runner}, ground cuckoo, churea, and snake killer. It is the state bird of New Mexico. [1913 Webster +PJC] chapati