The Scarlet Ibis

rank: thick and wild; smelly or overripe

imminent: near; about to happen

iridescent: rainbow-like; displaying a shifting range of colors

blighted: suffering from conditions that destroy or prevent growth

entrails: inner organs; guts

infallibility: inability to make a mistake

stubbornness; persistence doggedness: stubbornness; persistence

reiterated: repeated

unsteadily; insecurely precariously: unsteadily; insecurely

evanesced: faded away; disappeared

sullenly: gloomily or resentfully

lingered: slow or reluctant to leave, stayed about (slang: To hang around)