Definition of "quelea" []

• An African weaverbird of the genus Quelea, especially Q. quelea, a small red-billed bird that is extremely destructive to grain crops. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "These grain-devouring pests (usually called quelea) like to roost together in the tall grass after a day in the fields."
• "Irrigation projects may also encourage pesticide use to control insects and other pests such as the red-billed quelea or dioch (Quelea quelea)."
• "The Herald said an invasion of quelea birds, a local pest that destroys wheat when it is nearly ready for harvesting, had also compromised wheat yields."