Pajaros vs. Aves
At the animal shelter, I take people on a tour of the bird cage, telling them not to touch the "aves." Mexican workers told me that I need to say "pájaros," but people understood me both ways.
I tried the translator but I can't find any difference in the definitions.
3 Answers
Pájaro comes form Latin "passer" (sparrow), and it means bird, but specially not a big one. The word is most likely related to the words feather, pen (from French penne = feather) and pennon, a bird.
Ave comes from Latin "avis" (bird), and it is a more generic and slightly more technical term. English has words with the same Indo-European roots, like "aviation", "avian (flu)", "ostrich" (from avis struthio = bird ostrich)...
Pájaro can mean any winged animal even un murciélago o un pingüino. Ave is a bird that can fly, like the common birds you see everyday. They are often used interchangeably, and Im sure it varies from country to country.
Aves is any winged animal, birds are pájaras although aves is often used for birds.
