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Discussion thread for Northern Harrier. If you would like to add a comment, click the Post Reply button.
Not a good idea to put the archaic, officially deprecated name "marsh hawk" right at the top - it isn't used at all now except by a tiny minority of very elderly non-birders: basically, anyone who hasn't bought a field guide in the last 50 years.
Because Marsh Harrier = Circus aeruginosus / Circus spilonotus andBullsh*t. Still in wide use among non-elderly birders-- of whose number I am admittedly not one--in the areas I most often bird. Dto for Sparrow Hawk for kestrel. Anyway, why the animus against folk names?
And certainly not above Hen Harrier, which is in very widespread official use (and really ought to be split, why clements and H&M haven't is very odd). I'm going to be bold and remove "marsh hawk" altogether
Bullsh*t. Still in wide use among non-elderly birders-- of whose number I am admittedly not one--in the areas I most often bird.
. . .I would support
Hen Harrier/Northern Harrier
Alternative name in the US: Marsh Hawk. . .
Bullsh*t. Still in wide use among non-elderly birders-- of whose number I am admittedly not one--in the areas I most often bird. Dto for Sparrow Hawk for kestrel. Anyway, why the animus against folk names?
My animus against folk names - they're often misleading and confusing, so should not be promoted as having any 'official sanction' as a current correct name to be used, much as the way it was dropped in the 2 latest editions of the Nat Geog field guide. I don't see any reason why vernacular names for animals & plants shouldn't be treated with the same rigour as scientific names; one taxon, one name, with synonyms given only low visibility.
The alternative would be to always put both the BE and the AE names in the title (e.g.: Great Northern Diver (BE)/Common Loon (AE)), when and where they differ.Find that a little confusing and contradictory - with a global population standardizing names is going to give 'new' or 'americanised' or 'european' names to some as a default ...
FWIW, I think folk names are great (and oftentimes more colourful than the dry official names) - but only if they're not leading to confusion with other species because of identical or very similar names.
The alternative would be to always put both the BE and the AE names in the title (e.g.: Great Northern Diver (BE)/Common Loon (AE)), when and where they differ.
Time this one was divided into two pages, now that Clements has joined IOC in splitting Northern Harrier from Hen Harrier. I'll be happy to do so.