[texbirds] Fw: Yellow-bellied Flycatcher vs. yellow-bellied flycatcher

From: "Mel Cooksey" <cooksey@xxxxxxxxxx>
To: "Daniel Jones" <antshrike1@xxxxxxx>
Date: Sat, 21 Sep 2013 19:22:35 -0500
Since TPW Magazine is probably thought of as a popular or topical
publication, the convention is probably correct. I have understood
that ornithology-based media calls for common bird name capitalization,
but outside of ornithology, the inmates run the asylum.

Mel Cooksey
Corpus Christi

----- Original Message ----- 
From: <antshrike1@xxxxxxx>
To: <texbirds@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Saturday, September 21, 2013 6:16 PM
Subject: [texbirds] Yellow-bellied Flycatcher vs. yellow-bellied flycatcher


> While sitting in the doctor's office yesterday, I was reading the May 
> spring migration/birding issue of Texas Parks and Wildlife Magazine.  I 
> was dismayed but not surprised to see all of the bird names written 
> beginning with lower case letters except for names that involved a 
> person's or place's name.  Thus Cliff Shackelford's article about 
> Mississippi Kites was about "Mississippi kites".  And the article about 
> how rare birds can show up during migration was illustrated with a photo 
> of a blue mockingbird.  Other birds mentioned in the article included 
> masked tityra and elegant trogon, although the photo of the "elegant 
> trogon" was labeled "Elegant trogon".
>
> I see this frequently in posts on Texbirds by people new to the birding 
> world and it is understandable.  But Texas Parks and Wildlife should know 
> better.  I know why they do it this way.  It's because some old crusty 
> grammar teacher (I'm only speaking from experience) very effectively 
> brainwashed all the editors about the proper use of capital letters. They 
> are just being diligent editors and following the rules.
>
>
> Your response may be "So what?"  Well, these articles are written is a 
> very basic, dumbed-down style, so as to not scare away basic nature loving 
> Texans with too much information.  And for this magazine, I think that is 
> entirely appropriate.  The problem is your basic "person on the street" 
> has no concept of "species" and they're probably wondering "How in heck 
> did that mockingbird turn blue?"  "Darned if it ain't a blue mockingbird!"
>
>
> Starting a common bird name with lower case letters fails to communicate 
> that a particular bird is of a specific species (redundant?)  and not just 
> exhibiting a particular plumage or structural trait.  Thus yellow-bellied 
> flycatcher is simply stating that some type of flycatcher (whatever that 
> is) has a yellow belly.  This would include several empids, young Eastern 
> Phoebes, Western, Cassin's, Couch's and Tropical Kingbirds, Greater 
> Kiskadee, etc.  But Yellow-bellied Flycatcher means we are talking about 
> Empidonax flaviventris, a particular species with a very specific set of 
> traits, behaviors and genome, and not one of the species mentioned 
> previously.  Since few of us speak Latin, a common name with each part 
> beginning with upper case letters communicates better that the Latin genus 
> and specific epithet.  A tufted titmouse (Don't ask me what a titmouse 
> is!) might indeed be a Tufted Timouse or it could be an Oak Titmouse, 
> Juniper Titmouse or maybe a Black-crested Titmouse.
> Is the rare stygian owl really an owl from the river Styx?  By their rules 
> it should be Stygian owl.  But Stygian Owl means Asio stygius and you can 
> argue with the ornithologist about the appropriate nature of that specific 
> epithet.   Well, you get the point.
>
>
> I propose a massive letter writing campaign to the editors at Texas Parks 
> and Wildlife Magazine to try to encourage them to write bird names (and 
> other species of animals and plants) beginning with upper case letters.  I 
> know this would help enhance communication.  We need to start somewhere. 
> How can we expect the public to want to save a particular species when 
> they don't even know what the word "species" means.
>
>
> I feel better.
>
>
> Dan Jones, Weslaco
>
>
>
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[texbirds] Fw: Yellow-bellied Flycatcher vs. yellow-bellied flycatcher

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