I am a freshly minted 31 year old and I have been part of Colorados birding community for around 20 years. I grew up here, found my passion for birds and wildlife here, and built a career out of it. It was very difficult and now that I am here the path forward doesn’t feel any easier. We still have great challenges to overcome to create a better planet for birds and people.
A few years ago when discussion about changing bird names moved through twitter and instagram I was also initially hesitant. I love Wilson’s Warblers with all of my heart. But the more I learned about some (but not all) of the men that described these species the more it seemed that they were murderers first and avian hobbyists on the side. I think there are plenty of platforms to remember the people who described and categorized all these birds and it’s time to move on to new naming conventions. I know for a lot of younger birders this feels important because we feel we have so little power the change our world for the better. It feels like a tiny step to building a community fitting to our and future generations. I do think it’s inevitable and it is only a small change considering the changes that could face us in the coming years. I think Says Phoebe should be called Sunrise Phoebe. Megan Miller Pueblo, Co On Thu, Nov 2, 2023 at 10:08 PM Eric DeFonso <bay.w...@gmail.com> wrote: > I've just turned 56 and have now been birding for 30 years, but I am > excited about the prospect of some significant name-changes. I too have had > the opportunity to get to know a lot of young birders, and they get it, > which delights me. > > Personally, yes, I cringed once I realized who John McCown was. That to me > was an embarrassment, and now that I know who he was and what he fought > for, there's no unlearning that. I'm glad to see that the common name for > the bird no longer reflects the legacy of that really awful man. I can only > imagine then what a letdown it was or would have been if I weren't a white > person but wanted to get into birding. As we've seen, it was easy enough to > change that common name out, and we now regularly refer to that bird as the > Thick-billed Longspur. To me it's like taking down a statue of Robert E > Lee. Doing so doesn't erase Lee (or McCown) from history, it only means we > no longer celebrate what they did or represented. Similarly, I still look > back in amazement at how long the former name of the Long-tailed Duck was > retained. It was still in effect when I started birding and I remember > being a bit surprised at its existence and use since it sounded so > degrading to living people, so when it got switched, I felt better about > referring to the bird. > > Moreover, I do look forward to the new names that we'll be finding for > Townsend's Warbler, Solitaire, and Shearwater. It's a lot easier to > advocate for the protection of birds (by us humans) when the very name of > the birds you're seeking to protect aren't pointlessly offensive to other > humans whose help and cooperation we need. It's all about respect. The next > generation of birders needs to be larger and more diverse than we've been > up until now, and the objective is to get lots more people to care about > the long-term well-being of birds and their habitats. All hands on deck. > I'm all for carrying out an easy reform that reflects a commitment to > having as many people help out as can be. It's just a starting point to be > sure, but why not. > > I agree that sometimes eponymic names seem preferable because unique and > concise adjectival descriptors for some species can be difficult to come up > with. (One can witness this firsthand upon reading the South American > Classification Committee forum exchanges, where committee members routinely > discuss necessary name changes for South American birds.) This will be > especially true for so many tropical species, although the current > initiative isn't really designed or aimed at those groups. I also know that > not all eponyms derive from people who were awful. Some were at worst just > mildly annoying or no more fallible or obnoxious than any of us. Some names > have little or no connection to the people who actually first described the > birds (William Swainson comes to mind on both counts.) Humboldt was > practically exemplary of a great human being even by our modern standards, > certainly way above his contemporaries. Many others, like Parker, lived > concurrently with some of us and do seem worthy of commemoration. To that I > would say, sure, although I also remember that the name changes we're > discussing are only for the common names, and not the scientific names. > That's because changing the Latinized species name is an essentially > impossible process according to the longstanding and universal ICZN > (International Code of Zoological Nomenclature) conventions. For that > reason, even now the Thick-billed Longspur's scientific name is *Rhynchophanes > mccownii*, and cannot be changed unless a major change in our > understanding of its systematics arises (which in its case seems very > unlikely now). > > Similarly, Townsend's name will persist in scientific names like that of > the solitaire *(Myadestes townsendi*), etc. As will Parker's if it ever > comes to that with the tropical Parker's Antbird > *(Cercomacroides parkeri).* > > > ------- > Eric DeFonso > Boulder County, CO > > > On Thu, Nov 2, 2023 at 7:58 PM nic korte <nkor...@hotmail.com> wrote: > >> As an old guy lucky enough to go birding now and then with some >> 20-somethings…they are very passionate about this. They are the future. >> >> (I agree with Kenn Kaufman, however, the loss of an honorific such as >> Parker’s Antbird, would seem wrong. Besides, some of those families are so >> similar that meaningful descriptive names are impossible.) >> Nic Korte >> >> Sent from my iPad >> >> On Nov 2, 2023, at 7:47 PM, Susan Rosine <u5b2mt...@gmail.com> wrote: >> >> >> Let's face it -- a lot of bird names are stupid in general. They are not >> descriptive. >> So, don't just get rid of white men's names ------ >> Junco - Spanish for reed. ????? >> Mallard -- old French/English for Drake ????? >> Wren -- who knows? Haha >> Loon -- they aren't crazy (haha) >> Waterthrushes are Warblers. Fix that. >> >> ***WOMEN - how do you feel about Ruby-crowned Kinglet? The female is not >> ruby-crowned! And what about: >> Red-Winged Blackbird >> Ring-necked Pheasant >> Red Crossbill >> Brown-headed Cowbird >> Chestnut-collared Longspur >> Purple Finch >> Rose-breasted Grosbeak >> American Redstart >> Hooded Warbler >> Black-throated Blue Warbler >> And on, and on, and on. >> >> If AOS REALLY wants to be inclusive, and not offend anyone, how about we >> stop offending half of the human population? >> >> Done with my rant. Probably. >> Susan Rosine >> Brighton >> >> >> On Thu, Nov 2, 2023, 5:13 PM Bonnie Morgan <compassrose...@gmail.com> >> wrote: >> >>> why aren't we worried about renaming birds named for women's body parts? >>> >>> On Thu, Nov 2, 2023, 6:28 PM Evan Wilder <evan.d.burg...@gmail.com> >>> wrote: >>> >>>> Robert, >>>> >>>> What if we instead consider this issue from the perspective of an >>>> ever-evolving scientific community? We failed to acknowledge the >>>> destructive effects of colonialism and racism in the past, but we have a >>>> chance to improve upon that now. If we choose to “pause” our evolution now, >>>> when might it be more prudent to resume? >>>> >>>> It's undeniable that America's history has been fraught with racism. >>>> This effort by the AOS specifically shines a light on the colonial >>>> disparities that saturated the 19th century. I will quote below a paragraph >>>> from the AOS's full report >>>> <https://americanornithology.org/about/english-bird-names-project/english-bird-names-committee-recommendations/> >>>> on the naming decision. >>>> >>>> "A disproportionate number of eponyms were coined in the American West >>>> in the mid-1800s. One member of the committee found that, of the 78 eponyms >>>> in Tier 1 [the first wave of names being analyzed], 62% are from the West, >>>> primarily the Southwest; 77% of these were named between 1825 and 1875. >>>> Prior to that time and place, eponyms were relatively rare: Only 9 of the >>>> potentially 78 eponyms in Tier 1 were named before 1825. The eponyms from >>>> the American West largely honor and were conferred by “soldier scientists” >>>> traveling with the U.S. Army during the Mexican-American War and various >>>> Indian wars." >>>> >>>> Since the American Ornithological Society published extensively about >>>> its decisions, let me bring a few more of their points into the >>>> conversation. Quoted segments are from the same report quoted above >>>> <https://americanornithology.org/about/english-bird-names-project/english-bird-names-committee-recommendations/> >>>> . >>>> >>>> - Eponymous names are poor descriptors. Names that describe the >>>> bird (e.g., Spotted Sandpiper, Red-breasted Nuthatch), its habitat >>>> (e.g., >>>> Marsh Wren, Pinyon Jay), its range (e.g. Eastern Wood-Pewee, Mexican >>>> Chickadee), or something else about the species (e.g., Fish Crow, >>>> Northern >>>> Mockingbird) convey more information. >>>> - Alternative methods of naming nature that do not imply ownership >>>> should be used. Eponyms, bestowed as honors and awards to specific >>>> people, >>>> not only ignore and conceal attributes of birds, they imply ownership or >>>> possession of an entire species by one human. >>>> - We must also ask ourselves whose history we are commemorating >>>> through this list of names. Equating these names with the history of >>>> ornithology, or implying that ornithological history will be lost with >>>> the >>>> changing of these names, disregards the contributions and knowledge of >>>> populations that are not represented. >>>> - Instability from such accepted name changes is regularly >>>> tolerated and expected across users of bird names.Name changes occur >>>> annually, and dozens of name changes occurred in 1957 and 1973 (American >>>> Ornithologists’ Union 1957, Eisenmann et al. 1973). >>>> >>>> Many eponymous bird names came about by being the first white man to >>>> "discover" the species and codify the name within standard scientific >>>> taxonomy, which has historically been overseen by white men as well. The >>>> natural history and scientific history of birds goes well beyond this >>>> homogeneous approach, and maintaining our current naming system diminishes >>>> the role of birds in America's pre-colonial past – and the role of >>>> indigenous peoples in caring for them and their habitats. >>>> >>>> Thank you for your time. >>>> - Evan >>>> >>>> On Thu, Nov 2, 2023 at 3:28 PM Robert Righter <rorigh...@earthlink.net> >>>> wrote: >>>> >>>>> Hi: >>>>> >>>>> I would hope the American Ornithological Union would pause before >>>>> changing common names of birds that are named after historic >>>>> ornithologists >>>>> as that could be divisive . Currently we are living in a period of time >>>>> where accusations of racism are rampant and consequently we are currently >>>>> judging past historic figures based on our current definition of how >>>>> racist >>>>> they may have been. This is how history becomes distorted and historic >>>>> individuals unfortunately become misjudged. Let’s wait a decade or so and >>>>> revisit the topic again when hopefully our lenses are clearer, less >>>>> tainted. Why are we in such the rush to change the common names of birds >>>>> that have been established for centuries. We all need to take a deep >>>>> breath >>>>> or two and wait to see what transpires. >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> Bob Righter >>>>> >>>>> Denver, CO >>>>> >>>>> >> >>>> -- >> -- >> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google >> Groups "Colorado Birds" group. >> To post to this group, send email to cobirds@googlegroups.com >> For more options, visit this group at >> http://groups.google.com/group/cobirds?hl=en?hl=en >> * All posts should be signed with the poster's full name and city. >> Include bird species and location in the subject line when appropriate >> * Join Colorado Field Ornithologists https://cobirds.org/CFO/Membership/ >> --- >> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups >> "Colorado Birds" group. >> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an >> email to cobirds+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. >> To view this discussion on the web visit >> https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/cobirds/CACPnx8XSorMyczDmSAYW5NKj0DzYiATdVYubU_fGQwNB8V3Rnw%40mail.gmail.com >> <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/cobirds/CACPnx8XSorMyczDmSAYW5NKj0DzYiATdVYubU_fGQwNB8V3Rnw%40mail.gmail.com?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer> >> . >> >> -- >> -- >> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google >> Groups "Colorado Birds" group. >> To post to this group, send email to cobirds@googlegroups.com >> For more options, visit this group at >> http://groups.google.com/group/cobirds?hl=en?hl=en >> * All posts should be signed with the poster's full name and city. >> Include bird species and location in the subject line when appropriate >> * Join Colorado Field Ornithologists https://cobirds.org/CFO/Membership/ >> --- >> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups >> "Colorado Birds" group. >> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an >> email to cobirds+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. >> To view this discussion on the web visit >> https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/cobirds/PH8P221MB0968A89B9102C3B0D9B8F986F7A5A%40PH8P221MB0968.NAMP221.PROD.OUTLOOK.COM >> <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/cobirds/PH8P221MB0968A89B9102C3B0D9B8F986F7A5A%40PH8P221MB0968.NAMP221.PROD.OUTLOOK.COM?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer> >> . >> > -- > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google > Groups "Colorado Birds" group. > To post to this group, send email to cobirds@googlegroups.com > For more options, visit this group at > http://groups.google.com/group/cobirds?hl=en?hl=en > * All posts should be signed with the poster's full name and city. 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