Lois Shultz writes:
>
>>Not to throw more fuel on the fire, but perhaps we should be using the
>>"original" N. American name for Long-tailed duck: ahaaliq
>

Michael Price writes:

>If the AOU is *not* going to observe the courtesy of prior nomenclature of a
>monotypic species of both the Palaearctic and Nearctic, first named
>scientifically in English as Long-tailed Duck Clangula hyemalis (Linnaeus),
>I really like this idea.
>
>Incidentally, one of the names of this bird in New Brunswick is a great
>sonic rendition of its call's phrasing: 'south-southeasterly'.

I, too, especially like Ahaaliq -- very onomatopoetic.

Another onomatopoetic for the Oldsquaw I learned from an old Eskimo at
the duck camp near Barrow, AK. He saw me looking at and listening to the
birds, walked over, and asked me if I knew what the Oldsquaw call was.
Thinking I could impress the old Eskimo with my knowledge, I said
"a-ha-ha-lik." He replied, "No, you've got it wrong. Their call is "I'm
an alcoholic""

One of my peak Alaskan experiences.

Bob Boekelheide
Sequim