Getting back to the common name debate I will add another two cents worth
to my previous comments from the discussion several months ago.  I was at
the World Congress of Malacology and two aspects of the common name
question came up.  One was the publication of a book on common names of US
mollusks by the American Fisheries Society(?) with input from the American
Malacologists Union.  The lastest edition just came out and may be
considered the standard for American common names.  The second point was a
presentation by Joseph Heller from Hebrew University in Jerusalem.  His
presentation dealt with reasons for coining common names and outlined his
groups work in coming up with common names for 350 gastropods and 100
bivalves.  Who knows, I may just have to soften my position on this
question :-)
 
Charlie
******************************************************************************
Charlie Sturm, Jr
Research Associate - Section of Invertebrate Zoology
                     Carnegie Museum of Natural History
Assistant Professor - Family Medicine
 
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