Subject: Re: Standardized bird names
Date: Jan 18 18:19:48 1995
From: Peter Rauch - peterr at violet.berkeley.edu


>Date: Wed, 18 Jan 95 13:55:07 -0800
>From: dpaulson at ups.edu (Dennis Paulson)

>Spanish common names. The word sui'riri that you gave as an alternate
>common name for the Little Tinamou is also the generic (and specific) name
>for a South American Flycatcher, the (guess what) Suiriri' Flycatcher.
>Wonder how that came about? Any ideas, Alvaro?

Pure speculation on my part, but perhaps onomatopoeia is playing a role
in the Flycatcher's naming also (either directly [gee, that sounds like
suiriri]; or indirectly, possibly, at a transcription of some So Amer
native language name for the bird [which originated from their "gee,
sounds like ..."])?

There are a number of similar common names, which appear to be
onomatopoetic, and which render themselves into similar orthography in
Spanish. E.g, Pyrocephalus rubinus (titiribi', as well as pechirrojo
[red-breast] Vermillion Flycatcher, Colombia), or according to deShaun.
in Birds of Venez. the tody-flycatchers are called titiriji'
somethingorother, and the shrike-vireos are called siriri' thisthat.

Anyway, common names certainly have their ambiguities compared to
unique, ultra-stable, easy-to-remember scientific names, ...right? ;>)

Cheers,
Peter