Common Names please?

[John Grehan]

Even though quite a bit has been said already about common vs
scientific names I can't resist the temptation to add more.

I go along with the view that if common names are to be used, they
should at least be accompanied by scientific names.

I would tend to agree with a comment by Doug Yanega  about the
importance of tradition influencing use of scientifici or common names,
rather than whether one is a scientist or not. I found people in the US
much more reluctant to use scientific names for insects than I had
experienced in my country of origin. This was complicated somewhat
by the multitude of common names available for some species.

I found it interesting when
adding common names to a list of Lepidoptera for Vermont (based
on scientific names), that there was resistance by some people to the
inclusion of French common names even though we had Quebec right
next door (the French names were included).

Given the international flavour of entomology, I favour the priviliging of
scientific names. But at the same time I acknowledge the widespread
use of common names in some countries, so I would try to include
those where necessary.

I might have missed something, but if  Ken Philip's reference to a
"degree of acrimony that has sometimes appeared regarding this issue"
was referring to the current discussion I am not aware of it. So far
people have offerred their candid thoughts, and I have found all
comments of interest.

Sincerely, John Grehan