Bird Name-a-thon: Categorizing English bird names using crowdsourcing

Morrison, E. S.; Pandolfi, G. P.; Aguillon, S. M.; Ali, J. R.; Archard, O.; Baldassarre, D. T.; Baquero, I.; Bennett, K. F. P.; Bonney, K. M.; Bryant, R.; Catanach, R. M.; Catanach, T. A.; Chavoshan, I.; Davis, S. N.; Goodman, B. D.; Gulson-Castillo, E. R.; Hack, M.; Hudon, J.; Leighton, G. M.; Long, K. M.; Ma, Z.; McCoy, D. E.; McLaughlin, J. F.; Rueda Moreno, G.; Mota, T. M.; Noguchi, L.; Nwigwe, U.; Pegan, T.; Provost, K.; Rasband, S. A.; Salter, J. F.; Silvernail, L. C.; Simard, J. A.; Skeen, H. R.; Soto-Patino, J.; Suh, Y. H.; Wang, Q.; Warshauer, M. E.; Yan, S.; Zalinski, B.; Zhao, Z.; S

doi:10.1101/2024.09.13.612884

Home/Archive/bioRxiv

bioRxiv · 10.1101/2024.09.13.612884

Bird Name-a-thon: Categorizing English bird names using crowdsourcing

View original source ↗Export metadata ↓

Abstract

Common names of species are important for communicating with the general public. In principle, these names should provide an accessible way to engage with and identify species. The common names of species have historically been labile without standard guidelines, even within a language. Currently, there is no systematic assessment of how often common names communicate identifiable and biologically relevant characteristics about species. This is a salient issue in ornithology, where common names are used more often than scientific names for species of birds in written and spoken English, even by professional researchers. To gain a better understanding of the types of terminology used in the English-language common names of bird species, a group of 85 professional ornithologists and non-professional contributors classified unique descriptors in the common names of all recognized species of birds. In the AvianLexiconAtlas database produced by this work, each species common name is assigned to one of ten categories associated with aspects of avian biology, ecology, or human culture. Across 10,906 species of birds, 89% have names describing the biology of the species, while the remaining 11% of species have names derived from human cultural references, human names, or local non-English languages. Species with common names based on features of avian biology are more likely to be related to each other or be from the same geographic region. The crowdsourced data collection also revealed that many common names contain specialized or historic terminology unknown to many of the data collectors, and we include these terms in a glossary and gazetteer alongside the dataset. The AvianLexiconAtlas can be used as a quantitative resource to assess the state of terminology in English-language common names of birds. Future research using the database can shed light on historical approaches to nomenclature and how people engage with species through their names.

Source connections

Published article ↗

Explore related subjects

zoology Preprint

Keep this discovery

Explore connections, maps & timelines

BibTeX RIS

Morrison, E. S., Pandolfi, G. P., Aguillon, S. M., Ali, J. R., Archard, O., Baldassarre, D. T., Baquero, I., Bennett, K. F. P., Bonney, K. M., Bryant, R., Catanach, R. M., Catanach, T. A., Chavoshan, I., Davis, S. N., Goodman, B. D., Gulson-Castillo, E. R., Hack, M., Hudon, J., Leighton, G. M., Long, K. M., Ma, Z., McCoy, D. E., McLaughlin, J. F., Rueda Moreno, G., Mota, T. M., Noguchi, L., Nwigwe, U., Pegan, T., Provost, K., Rasband, S. A., Salter, J. F., Silvernail, L. C., Simard, J. A., Skeen, H. R., Soto-Patino, J., Suh, Y. H., Wang, Q., Warshauer, M. E., Yan, S., Zalinski, B., Zhao, Z., S. 2024-09-16. Bird Name-a-thon: Categorizing English bird names using crowdsourcing. https://doi.org/10.1101/2024.09.13.612884

Cite the original work for its findings. Save a collection to share your selection of sources.

KEEP EXPLORING

Related preprints

bioRxiv2026

Impact of iron-enriched diets on the nutritional composition and microbiome diversity of house crickets (Acheta domesticus)

Iron deficiency (ID) and iron-deficiency anaemia (IDA) pose significant global health challenges. ID and IDA are particularly widespread in Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asian countries, where reliance on plant-based foods is high. Edible insects provide an alternative nutritious food source, rich in both protein and essential minerals and trace elements. Little is known about how dietary iron manipulation affects the trace element bioaccumulation and microbiome community composition of edible insects. This study examined the impact of dietary iron supplementation on the growth, survival, nutrient profile, and microbiome of Acheta domesticus. Experimental diets were formulated using iron (II) sulphate heptahydrate, resulting in final iron concentrations ranging from 333.45 mg Fe/kg (control diet) to 6923.39 mg Fe/kg (100 mM Fe diet). Iron supplementation significantly altered the cricket trace element profile, with iron levels increasing fivefold from basal 21.38 mg/kg to 118.34 mg/kg in the highest iron treatment group. Concurrently, manganese levels showed a strong negative correlation with dietary iron, while zinc and cadmium displayed non-significant downward trends. High-iron diets statistically altered dry matter, chitin, and TBARS, whereas carbohydrates, protein, glycogen, and lipids remained stable. Amino acid profiles shifted progressively, with branched-chain, sulphur-containing, and aromatic amino acids peaking in the 25 mM Fe group. In contrast, the diversity and overall structure of the microbial community remained unaffected across all treatments. In conclusion, tailoring dietary iron can significantly boost the iron content of Acheta domesticus without compromising host survival or altering core microbial structures. To optimize insect rearing strategies aimed at alleviating human micronutrient deficiencies, a feeding dose of 10-25 mmol Fe/kg is recommended.

zoology↗

bioRxiv2026

Tardigrades survive reversible dormancy during spaceflight: In-orbit revival, post-flight recovery, and transcriptomic responses

Long-duration space missions face substantial challenges, including limited resources and prolonged exposure to microgravity and radiation. Transporting organisms in a dormant state and reviving them at their destination could help overcome some of these limitations. However, the feasibility of this strategy has not been experimentally demonstrated in multicellular animals beyond Earth. Here, we investigated this possibility using tardigrades, microscopic invertebrates capable of entering a reversible state of dormancy. We demonstrate that dormant tardigrades can withstand near-absolute-zero temperatures (~12 mK), near-vacuum conditions (10-9 mbar), high doses of ionizing radiation (3000 Gy), and complete desiccation. We transported dormant tardigrades to the International Space Station (ISS). They were revived aboard the ISS, subsequently returned to a dormant state, and successfully revived again following their return to Earth. Approximately 45% of the space-flown tardigrades survived the 64-day experimental period. This included two dormancy-revival cycles, 18 days aboard the ISS, and prolonged periods without food or water. Importantly, surviving tardigrades retained their reproductive capacity. Transcriptomic analysis of ISS-exposed tardigrades revealed upregulation of genes associated with protein folding and stress responses, accompanied by downregulation of genes involved in energy metabolism and protein synthesis, providing insights into their molecular responses to the spaceflight environment. Together, these findings demonstrate the successful revival and re-induction of dormancy in a multicellular animal beyond Earth and establish an experimental foundation for exploring dormancy-based strategies for future long-duration space missions.

zoology↗

bioRxiv2026

A baseline for aquatic parasite diversity in West African mangroves: host-parasite records, DNA barcodes, and an experimental design for future use

Macroparasites represent a major fraction of biodiversity and biomass in marine ecosystems, yet remain substantially underrepresented in ecological surveys and food-web models, particularly in the Global South. This study addresses this geographic bias by providing the first comprehensive ecological survey of macroparasite communities of fishes in a West African Marine Protected Area (MPA) and adjacent Open-Access Area (OAA) characterised by mangrove forests. We collected 5,020 parasite specimens from 10 fish and one crab species in the Saloum Delta, Senegal, identifying 27 parasite species across all major taxa. Our findings include 15 new records for Senegal of which 11 are also new for West Africa. Additionally, 64% of host-parasite combinations constitute new host records. We provide 208 DNA barcodes, offering the first molecular data for 31% of these species globally and establishing a reference library for future DNA metabarcoding efforts in the region. Using sample size-corrected biodiversity indices and mixed-model analyses, we detected significant variations in parasite infracommunities and component communities between the MPA and OAA, demonstrating the feasibility of using comparative study designs to monitor fisheries impacts on parasite diversity in the Saloum Delta. Furthermore, the identification of trophically transmitted parasites provided evidence of unstudied food-web connections, e.g. predator-prey linkages between fishes and higher-trophic-level definitive hosts including birds and elasmobranchs. By integrating morphological identification, molecular data, and archiving of voucher specimens into publicly accessible, curated collections, this study establishes a new baseline for marine parasite biodiversity in West Africa and provides a methodological blueprint for surveying understudied regions.

zoology↗