[WikiEN-l] naming convention for birds and others

[Ray Saintonge]

JFrost8401 at aol.com wrote:

> Ec
>
> I am sorry that this debate is getting so heated. There has been a 
> compromise reached, and I can't see the necessity to upset it.
>
> The capitalisation style is not restricted to field guides. It is 
> standard in indubitably serious profession publications and 
> organisations such as the British Ornithological Union, British Birds 
> Rarities Committee, Birds of the Western Palearctic, Handbook of Birds 
> of The World, Handbook of Australian and New Zealand Birds, Ibis etc.
>
> Also Charles Sibley's DNA-DNA scientific papers use capitalisation, 
> and you can't get much more serious than that (incidently, he also 
> wrote and illustrated the best current guide to the birds of North 
> America).
>
> The main exceptions to capitalisation are paper encyclopedias and 
> their on-line versions. The serious point I was making earlier was 
> that the nature of wikien means that there have to be compromises, as 
> there are on spelling and vocabulary issues, and the nature of some of 
> the articles. If we want this project to be like Brittanica, why 
> bother competing?
>
> As you are aware, my main interest is birds, but mammals, as far as I 
> can see, follow the same conventions. I don't know enough about other 
> taxonomic groups to go to the wall on them. I can't see why the people 
> who write the articles can't get on with using the agreed consistent 
> style without it upsetting those who don't, on the whole, write the 
> articles
>
> Jim


The tone of Jim's post is considerably cooled from the previous, and I 
too am willing to cool down my own rhetorical flair.

The discussion is now under way to determine just what the compromise is 
or means.  

The one common point about all the works that you cite is that every one 
is about birds.  You've made a strong case for birds, and, in the 
absence of my being able to provide additional strong evidence, I have 
already indicated that I am content to leave well enough alone on the 
bird articles.

The primary battle ground seems to be with mammals.  Lower case seems to 
be a less heated issue with lower fauna.  I'd like to see stronger 
authorities in the specific case of mammals.

Ec