Subject: a pox on codes
Date: Nov 29 11:22:58 2001
From: Hal Opperman - halop at accessone.com


Concerning codes (abbreviations) for bird names:

1) there is no one standard system in use; in fact there are several
conflicting ones: four- and five-letter, Latin or English, and so
forth.

2) these are meant to be used in particular, specialized contexts
where uniformity is a requirement, such (for example) as when masses
of information are stored in a database.

3) they are unfriendly to the ordinary reader (99.999% of the world),
non-transparent, potentially confusing, and a classic example of
professional jargon the use of which, to be effective, needs to be
confined to the context for which it was created.

4) although they appear intuitive and easy to learn, they are full of
snares and deceptions. For example, is SASP a Savannah or a Sage
Sparrow? That is an arbitrary call unless you are clued in to the
secret language. What about when bird names change? Often the codes
are locked in and don't change along with them. For example, what do
you think a COBO is? A Cobalt Booby, maybe? no, it's a Barn Owl,
once (but no longer) known as the Common Barn Owl.

Anyway, we will be doing ourselves and others a big service if we
just use the full names of birds when we record any information
which, now or later, may be destined for a wider audience.

Hal Opperman
Medina, Washington
halop at accessone.com