Hai Collection, Lower Volume Radical: Bird (niǎo) Character: tian Kangxi strokes: 21 Page 1498, Entry 03 Guangyun (Dictionary of Rhymes): Pronounced tian. Jiyun (Collection of Rhymes): Pronounced tian. Erya (Approaching Elegance), Interpretation of Birds: Tian is the mother of mosquitoes. Guo Commentary: It resembles a crow but is larger, with mixed yellow and white patterns; its cry sounds like a dove. People in Jiangdong today call it the mosquito mother. It is also known as the mosquito-spitting bird. Lingnan Yiwuzhi (Strange Objects of Lingnan): The mosquito-spitting bird is as large as a blue-green egret, has a large beak, and eats fish. Also, according to Jiyun (Collection of Rhymes): Pronounced zhen. Also: Pronounced dian. The meaning is the same.