Bird sp?

Masked Lapwing (Vanellus miles).

(spur-winged plover in New Zealand, but that's a bit confusing internationally!)

And goes by both Spurwing and Masked Plover in Australia.

Chlidonias said:

(spur-winged plover in New Zealand, but that's a bit confusing internationally!)

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Oh come on, you know that's the name of V. spinosus. Give it back!

Hix said:

And goes by both Spurwing and Masked Plover in Australia.

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I've long ago mentally readjusted myself so that all Vanellus are called 'lapwing' - used to drive myself mad switching between the two!

(I've also got a personal policy on whether a given anuran family are 'frogs' or 'toads' - and I stick with it!)

Maguari said:

(I've also got a personal policy on whether a given anuran family are 'frogs' or 'toads' - and I stick with it!)

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what about turtles and terrapins?

Chlidonias said:

what about turtles and terrapins?

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I'm working on that one!

I'd generally have a preference on a species level, but they're complicated by sliders, cooters etc as well. A frog or toad is always a frog or a toad*.


Another one is guenons - I much prefer to call them all '_____ Guenon' but 'Diana Guenon' still sounds odd!





*Except when it's a chicken of course... we could never have no exceptions at all, could we?

Maguari said:

but 'Diana Guenon' still sounds odd!

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'Diana Guenon' sounds like the title of a BBC period miniseries!

Hix said:

'Diana Guenon' sounds like the title of a BBC period miniseries!

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After the last 14 years in Britain, anything with 'Diana' in the title sounds like a Daily Express headline.



(I know you liked her, Daily Express (an awfult lot of people did) but she's gone. There is other news..!)

Maguari said:

After the last 14 years in Britain, anything with 'Diana' in the title sounds like a Daily Express headline.

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I've heard people at a zoo admiring the Dianas and assuming they are named after 'her'

Spur-winged Plover was one of the first bird species I saw on Australian soil-along with those 'crows'- outside the airport at Melbourne. They are very noisy in Australia/Tasmania but seem less so in New Zealand.

oh they're still noisy in New Zealand! We do have a lot fewer birds of prey (2), crows (0) and other big scary flying birds though, so maybe the Australian plovers just have more to scream about.