If we capitalized every bird name as if it were a proper noun, our writing
would (and in some cases does) approach German usage, where every noun is
capitalized, proper or not. I prefer the capitalization of someone's name
in the species name, e.g., Heermann's gull, but with the family name lower
case. If we're not capitalizing trees and animals, why should birds be
treated preferentially? Let's be scientifically consistent.


Charles Easterberg
University of Washington
easterbg at u.washington.edu