She was named after the ortolan, a European bunting. The song of the male ortolan resembles that of the yellowhammer. The ortolan bunting is in length and has a wing-span of . To MoWT in 1941 and renamed "Empire Ortolan". The first USS "Ortolan" was a in the United States Navy. The English "ortolan" is derived from Middle French , "gardener". He has also been given the names Martin Ortolan or Lortholain in later sources. Temporary repairs took until 23 July, when the boat was taken in tow by "Ortolan". Two months after the formal Japanese surrender "Ortolan" again headed west. Ortolan nests are placed on or near the ground. The ortolan is served in French cuisine, typically cooked and eaten whole. In 1939 the Ortolan assisted in the recovery of the USS Squalus off Portsmouth, NH. Assigned to the Pacific Fleet, "Ortolan" got underway for the west coast 10 November 1919.