The Lincolnshire Bird Club

Alastair,
When I've been ringing in Gibraltar and Portugal with non-English speaking ringers we used the Latin names as a matter of course and the following will show you why. Take Spotted Flycatcher for instance - in Finnish it is Harmaasiepo, French - Gobemouche gris, German - Grauschnapper and Swedish it is Gra flugsnappare (my favourite!). Therefore if we all used Muscicapa striata it would make life much easier for our foreign readers (but maybe not Colin and Sheila!).
Regards,
Stuart.

At least the Latin (Muscicapa striata : 'streaked (crown and breast) flycatcher')) for Spotted Flycatcher is more descriptive of the adult bird than the English language version. Only the young birds have (pale brown) spots - on the head and back.

I've always thought that the French 'Gobe-mouche gris - Grey fly-gobber/Grey fly-swallower' is the most attractive foreign name.......although the Welsh 'Gwybedog mannog' is quite a mouthful : " I once saw seven Gwybedog mannog near Blaenau Ffestiniog. "

Freddy
PS. On the other hand, for us British down at the pub with other birders, I'd much prefer telling them that I'd seen 2 Wrens, a Robin and a Song Thrush in the garden rather than 2 Troglodytes troglodytes, an Erithacus rubecula and a Turdus philomenos.... and I think, over a pint or two of John Smith's, they'd prefer the English versions too.

Do we mean latin or do we mean scientific as all latin names are scientific but not all scientific names are in latin.

Toby,

I think it's generally understood among most birders that scientific names are loosely referred to as being 'Latin', although they may also be derived from neo-Latin and Ancient Greek.

All scientific names regardless of their origin are treated grammatically as Latin. Ancient Greek words are transliterated in accordance with generally accepted rules.

The commonest Latin terminations are :

(1) -us (masculine), -a (feminine), -um (neuter)..........eg. Parus cristatus (Crested Tit)

(2) -is (masculine), -is (feminine), -e (neuter).............eg. Parus palustris (Marsh Tit)

(3) -er (masculine), -era (feminine), -erum (neuter).....eg. Parus ater (Coal Tit).

(All scientific names in use BEFORE the 'new' nomenclature).

Freddy

If we are not careful this forum will go all Welsh on us with birds being first referred to in their English (Common Name) and then with the Latin version.

Would be all Greek to me!

James (Lacomous)

Quite right, James, and if I added that the Spotted Flycatcher in Dutch is :

Grauwe vliegenvanger, then ....... Grauwe vliegenvanger - Grauwe vliegenvanger would be Double-Dutch to all of us.

Freddy

And to add further confusion, it was a Swede Carl Linnaeus, who used Latin to create his Nomenclature - there you go!