Older topics dealing with this have been closed (e.g. https://forum.inaturalist.org/t/common-names-invented-on-inat/27452 ). If mods want to roll this into one of those, that’s probably a good idea. The bowfin (previously one species, Amia calva) has been revised: https://royalsocietypublishing.org/…

[image] jasonhernandez74: That was what I was referring to with Horrendous Space Kablooie vs. Big Bang. That’s what brought it to mind. Thanks.

Seems like a lot of angst here over a proposed pair of common names that might or might not even be in use in the near future. Proposed doesn’t mean it’s set in stone. If they’re used on iNat for the moment, doesn’t mean alternative names can’t be proposed and gain favor down the road.

No angst over the original proposal. Anybody can propose anything (at least in some places). I’ve become a bit annoyed by the undercurrent of academic pretension around vernacular names on a site that is supposed to be about citizen science, but not annoyed enough that there’s any angst about it. B…

I suppose one could also add the names salamander and sandy mounder as alternative common names for the Southeastern Pocket Gopher. Or spring lizards for the true salamanders. Those names are also in use in southern states. Would they clarify things for an iNat user from that region? Maybe. But I s…

Then the explanations of standards for entering common names need to be changed because the idea that confused/confusing names are not legitimate common names is nowhere in iNat’s documentation. This may be defensible according to somebody’s standard’s (certainly not mine) but it should not be up to…

So so many homonyms. Perhaps if the ‘welcome to iNat newbie’ searched for their familiar scorpion. And found it! iNat could display that common name Either as scorpion (toothy skink) or scorpion (Southern USA) We need disambiguation prompts. Erica? Are you one of our hundreds of flowering …

[image] jnstuart: I suppose one could also add the names salamander and sandy mounder as alternative common names for the Southeastern Pocket Gopher. Or spring lizards for the true salamanders. Those names are also in use in southern states. Would they clarify things for an iNat user from that r…

Is this view a Curator page? I can’t seem to find something like it. I have added a common name to a lexicon. It shows up in strike-thru font so I’m not sure what’s happening. Adding additional common names that people are using doesn’t sound controversial. Picking the default and making up nam…

[image] tallastro: Is this view a Curator page? I can’t seem to find something like it. I’m not sure. It’s here, can you access this? https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/44057/names Also, can you link to that common name that you’ve added? Hard to tell what’s going on in the abstract.

Nope. Curators only message. It’s Striped Wintergreen. I put in a name that I’ve know since the 1970s, Striped Pipsissewa. The name seemed to be used from Pennsylvania to New England (at least that’s where I found it). It will show up in a search. Funny part is that the 1st time I saw it listed in…

Inventing common names redux

General

Topic		Replies	Views
Common names invented on iNat General common-names	193	12345	March 29, 2023
Common names from "not good enough" sources Curators	73	5429	December 13, 2022
Interpretation of rule against invented common names General	86	1808	November 11, 2025
Curator guidelines about made-up names Curators common-names	81	2133	November 23, 2024
What to do about silly common names? General common-names	54	2208	October 4, 2024

Inventing common names redux

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