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Re: Today's ABA birding blog

From:

Frank Boyle

Reply-To:

Frank Boyle

Date:

Fri, 1 Apr 2011 18:44:25 -0400

I somewhat agree.  AOU? Bunch of old, tired bored ornithologists.
Feh.  Get out and bird, I say...  leave the moldy lumps and splits to
the hair-splitters.

Frank Boyle
Rohrersville, MD


On Fri, Apr 1, 2011 at 9:59 AM, Gerald & Laura Tarbell
<> wrote:
> People seem to think that ABA matters.  ABA hasn't mattered in 15-20 years
>> as far as I'm concerned.  So don't worry Jim, we won't shoot you.
>>
>> Norm and all,
>
> Perhaps the ABA doesn't matter but if you read the article, this all comes
> (in advance via the ABA) from the AOU, which, sadly, does matter because
> they think they rule all things Ornithological. We are going thru the usual
> round of lumping and splitting that has listers erasing and adding checks
> every year. Why they keep wavering back and forth on these matters is what
> gets me. Folks, they are doing it again. Get ready (again) for Northern
> Orioles, Rufous-sided Towhees and, are you ready?, - Lazuli and Indigo
> Buntings will become one. They didn't give a name for that one. However they
> are splitting Slate-colored and Oregon Juncos. Yippee.
>
> I think the problem comes from factions within the AOU. They can't agree on
> a definition for what a species is and whenever one side dominates the
> committee that decides these matters, the other side has their nose out of
> joint until they come into power. Kinda like Democrats and Republicans. You
> know that if one faction usurps power, that certain things will change. You
> would think that in this age of genetic research that by now they would have
> decided what constitutes a species. Just look at the genetic "fingerprint"
> and agree that a certain amount of overlap is acceptable within separate
> species. However nobody can seem to decide what is acceptable and the line
> keeps moving.
>
> Off my soapbox for now. I know this all sounds strange coming from a
> non-lister, but unfortunately I live with one and her list just shrunk
> again. I haven't got the heart to tell her. Somebody out there want to do it
> for me?
>
> Jerry Tarbell
> Living with a shrunken list in Carroll County
>
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-- 
"I became insane, with long intervals of horrible sanity."
-E.A. Poe

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