ダニを食べたり、大型哺乳類の傷口に入り込んで肉片をついばむ小型の鳥。鋭く特殊な嘴を使って、傷口の露出した肉組織を容易にえぐり取り、栄養を摂取する。鳥類ではあるが、どこか寄生生物に近い印象を与える。
In addition to eating ticks, yellow-billed oxpeckers have been observed scavenging wounds on large mammals. They have sharp, specialized beaks that allow them to dig into cuts and feed on exposed tissue, which provides a steady source of nutrition, though it creates a clearly parasitic relationship.