fulvus

Fulvus is a Latin adjective meaning tawny, yellowish-brown, or brownish-yellow. In Latin grammar, the masculine form is fulvus, the feminine fulva, and the neuter fulvum. In English usage, fulvus appears primarily in scientific naming and descriptive text to denote a tawny coloration.

In taxonomy, fulvus is a common species epithet used to describe animals or plants with tawny or pale brown coloration. For example, the fulvous whistling duck (Dendrocygna bicolor) is named for its warm tawny plumage. The epithet is employed across multiple taxonomic groups to signal a similar coloration, though the exact shade can vary among species.

Beyond strict taxonomy, fulvous is also used as an English color term to describe a warm, tawny shade that lies between yellow and brown. It appears in color dictionaries, naturalist descriptions, and some heraldic or descriptive contexts, but it is not a standardized heraldic tincture.

Etymologically, the English term fulvous is derived from the Latin fulvus, reflecting the long-standing practice of using Latin adjectives to describe organism coloration in scientific naming and natural history writing.