Subject: "Steller's (!!) jay
Date: Nov 23 22:17:57 1998
From: MurrayH at aol.com - MurrayH at aol.com


I, too, have noticed the spelling but concluded it was probably a typo and
not something for an old English teacher to comment on. HOWEVER, it has
bothered me and I'm glad someone else has noticed it. The same incorrect
spelling has recently appeared on a Fish and Wildlife Backyard reporting
form--dare one point out the editorial goof (?)--The following account is from
Ernest A. Choate's "The Dictionary of American Bird Names":

"George Wilhelm Steller was an 18th century German naturalist who accompanied
Vitus Bering, the Danish navigator who was employed by Russia to determine
whether or not the coasts of Siberia and Alaska were contiguous. Bering died
when the expedition was wintering on Bering Island in 1741-1742. Steller
wrote an account of his travels and described birds and animals, among them
the Steller's Sea Cow (extinct) and Steller's sea lion. An eider and jay bear
his name. He died in Tiemen, Siberia."

Feel the same way about the "Vaux Swift" instead of "Vaux's Swift." Townsend
named the swift he had discovered on the Columbia River for his friend.
Regards,

Murray Hansen
Graham, WA
MurrayH at aol.com