Nectaring

[Anne Kilmer]

That wasn't a copy editor, Mike, it was a real editor. There's a
difference. I have been both, and I know. 
Copy editors can be buffaloed, but there is no cowing an editor. He/she
runs the show. 
It is possible to educate copy editors unless they have a style book.
Alas, usually they do. And the style book does not extend into our areas
of study. 
I say to nectar is a verb, and I say you use it whatever the butterfly
is sipping; being  a fly kissing carrion or whatever. But getting this
information into the dictionaries is the problem.
Perhaps we should appeal to William Safire for help. He's a smart
fellow. 
If he commits suicide, we will know whom to blame. 
Cheers
Anne Kilmer
South Florida

Michael Gochfeld wrote:
> 
> John et al.
> 
>         Copy editors are strange people entitled to their own professional
> beliefs, but we have hammered away successfully.  Your sounds like my
> college English professor who said that nouns cannot be used as
> adjectives. Thus  "kitchen door" is an unlawful uses of English.  He
> didn't think it funny when I wrote "a jam of traffic". (He committed
> suicide midway through my first semester). I hope it was nothing I said.
> 
>         We hammered away successfully at getting species names capitalized.
> I've argued before why they should be capitalized. Is a little wood
> satry just a small wood satyr (no way for a reader to know).
> 
>         I don't see any reason why our discipline can't coin the term "to
> nectar". Maybe we have to send it in to the dictionary people for their
> next edition. I vaguley remember seeing a call-for-new-words issued from
> some publisher.
>          I wonder when the term "to benchmark" became acceptable. Anyway "Ohio"
> is a great and valuable book and I don't recall being upset at the way
> the editing worked out.
> 
>         Mike Gochfeld
> 
> John Shuey wrote:
> >
> > When we were writing the "Butterflies and Skippers of Ohio" which was
> > published as a reviewed monograph, our editor assured us that there was no
> > verb - "to nectar".  Rather she documented that nectar is a noun, and that
> > butterflies are often seen feeding at nectar sources.  Given her power over
> > the monograph and its adherence to rigorous standards, she expunged all of
> > our attempts to conjugate "to nectar" from the text, and replaced with more
> > exacting use of the english language.  This placed feeding at nectar sources
> > in the same category as feeding at rotting fruit,, feeding on carrion,
> > feeding on fox feces, and so on.
> >
> > While I'll admit that "fecesing" and "fruiting" don't ring my bell, I still
> > like nectaring.  While I would not attempt to use it in a peer reviewed
> > publication again, I do use it when writing for more general audiences.
> >
> > John Shuey
> >
> > ys-sedman at wiu.edu wrote:
> >
> > > Lepidopterists, especially butterfly workers, often use the word
> > > "nectaring" when butterflies appear to be feeding at a flower, and this
> > > seems quite appropriate even if not always accurate.  Are other forms of
> > > the verb used to describe butterfly activity?  Is it said that
> > > butterflies have "nectared" in the past, etc.?
> > >
> > > Finally, what words are used when butterflies are seen on feces,
> > > puddles, rotten fruit, carrion, etc. (puddling, etc.) and seem to be
> > > taking up fluids?  Yale
> > >
> > > --
> >
> > --
> > John Shuey