Subject: Spelling of Xantus's Hummingbird
Date: Nov 27 01:30:52 1997
From: Geopandion at aol.com - Geopandion at aol.com


Tweeters,

We took the pilgrimage to Gibsons, B.C., on Sunday and had very
satisfactory looks at the hummingbird, the pouring rain showers
notwithstanding.
Just a note on the spelling of the hummingbird's name. If a word ends
in "s", one has the choice of spelling the possessive depending on how the
word is pronounced. The operative rule is that the apostrophe does not have
a sound associated with it. Thus, if one says "Xantus Hummingbird", it
should be spelled "Xantus' Hummingbird". If one says "Xantuses
Hummingbird", it should be spelled "Xantus's Hummingbird" with the extra "s"
after the apostrophe. Likewise, "Ross's Gull" not "Ross' Gull" if you are
saying "Rosses", and "Harris's Hawk" not "Harris' Hawk", for the same reason.
The AOU and ABA have adopted Xantus's, Ross's, and Harris's Hawk as the
correct spellings for these names.

Source: Hugh Willoughby, proof editor for ABA's "Birding" magazine.
Hugh lives in Rhode Island. He can be reached at:
Commarule3 at aol.com

George Gerdts
Bainbridge Island
Geopandion at aol.com