UPDATE: please try to avoid discussing advantages/disadvantages/differences of common and scientific names here. This topic specifically addresses a problem that is frequent - particularly in some groups of organisms - on iNat and is against iNat guidelines: invention of common names by iNat users t…

[image] raymie: There is for birds, but I don’t believe there is an authority for the common names of any other groups (although there are some authorities in the process of standardizing common names for mammals and herps). For North America (U.S., Canada, & Mexico), the American Fisheries S…

A couple other relevant Forum threads for this discussion: https://forum.inaturalist.org/t/list-of-sources-for-common-names-wiki/10249 https://forum.inaturalist.org/t/reliable-sources-for-common-names-on-inaturalist/5579

[image] earthknight: I’d suggest that the “public” expects common names that they personally use to be locally familiar, but not to be standardized in any manner. This is not true based on my experience with public opinions: many people from my real life personal experience are surprised that…

You’re not in minority here! I have no idea how people can confuse scientific and common names origins, if common name suits the organism - let it be, if then other websites will use it too and people will use it, then it’s a good name.

[image] twainwright: For North America (U.S., Canada, & Mexico), the American Fisheries Society ( fisheries.org ) standardizes common names of fishes Same thing for Australia

[image] marina_gorbunova: if common name suits the organism - let it be, if then other websites will use it too and people will use it, then it’s a good name. Firstly, this is against iNat guidelines: new names should not be created on iNat. There are good reasons for that which are probably …

There’s little difference between making up new names and using those that was created by someone else and used once before, which is the case for thousands of common names. Common names are more often misleading than not, same could be said for scientific names if we were using them blindly as des…

[image] marina_gorbunova: There’re many cases of long established common names that do more bad than good, why should it be different with new names? I think this is important question but it is out of this topic - or rather above it. There is also clearly a problem with how the term “common …

I didn’t suggest it’s ok as it’s against guidelines, have no idea why you think I meant this, I wrote I agree with another user that I see no reason in making it such a big deal. I haven’t met a name that was created on/for iNat, though personally I wouln’t mind a name for many taxa, e.g. families u…

Common names invented on iNat

General

thebeachcomber October 27, 2021, 3:45am 47

Same thing for Australia

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Common names invented on iNat

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