Improving the language of migratory bird science in North America

Several long-accepted terms are widely misused in ornithology and have led to a misperception of important concepts in the ecology of Nearctic-Neotropical migratory birds. The term North America (and its ancillary terms North American species, North American habitats, etc.) is widely used to refer to the United States and Canada, when in fact it should include all of the continent from the Arctic through Panama. In a similar vein, the terms wintering and over-wintering (whether used to describe the status of individual birds or species, or as a modifier for terms like habitats, ecology, or behavior), spring migration and fall migration are inappropriate for Nearctic-Neotropical migrants because they explicitly reference conditions in the temperate zone of the continent, even as most such species spend the majority of their annual cycle elsewhere, where these terms are inaccurate and unhelpful. We discuss the pitfalls of using these terms and suggest several alternatives and replacements. In particular, we urge more precision in the use of the term North America; for Nearctic-Neotropical migratory species (especially long-distance migrants), we suggest retiring the terms wintering and over-wintering in favor of nonbreeding; and for the same group of species we suggest retiring the terms spring migration and fall migration in favor of pre-breeding, post-breeding, or post-natal migration. center dot Several long-accepted terms are widely misused in ornithology and have led to a misperception of important concepts in the ecology of Nearctic-Neotropical migratory birds.center dot The term North America is widely used to refer to the United States and Canada, when it should include the continent from the Arctic through Panama.center dot The terms wintering, over-wintering, spring migration, and fall migration refer to annual cycle events with terminology based on the temperate zone of North America. In the Neotropics, where hundreds of species spend the majority of their life, these terms are imprecise or incorrect.center dot We urge more precision in the use of the term North America. For long-distance migratory species, we suggest retiring the terms wintering and over-wintering in favor of nonbreeding; and suggest retiring the terms spring migration and fall migration in favor of pre-breeding, post-breeding, or post-natal migration. Varios terminos ampliamente aceptados se utilizan incorrectamente en ornitologia y han llevado a una percepcion erronea de conceptos importantes en la ecologia de las aves migratorias nearticas-neotropicales. El termino America del Norte (y sus terminos auxiliares especies norteamericanas, habitats norteamericanos, etc.) se utiliza ampliamente para referirse a Estados Unidos y Canada, cuando en realidad deberia incluir todo el continente desde el artico hasta Panama. En una linea similar, los terminos invernada y pasar el invierno (ya sea utilizados para describir el estatus de aves individuales o especies, o como modificador de terminos como habitats, ecologia o comportamiento), migracion de primavera y migracion de otono no son apropiados para las aves migratorias nearticas-neotropicales, ya que hacen referencia explicita a condiciones en la zona templada del continente, incluso cuando la mayoria de estas especies pasan la mayor parte de su ciclo anual en otro lugar, donde estos terminos son inexactos e inutiles. Discutimos las trampas de utilizar estos terminos y sugerimos varias alternativas y reemplazos. En particular, instamos a una mayor precision en el uso del termino America del Norte; para las especies migratorias nearticas-neotropicales (especialmente las de larga distancia), sugerimos retirar los terminos invernada y pasar el invierno a favor de no reproductivas; y para el mismo grupo de especies sugerimos retirar los terminos migracion de primavera y migracion de otono en favor de migracion pre-reproductiva, migracion post-reproductiva o migracion postnatal.

Automated summary

Several widely misused terms in ornithology have led to misconceptions about important concepts in the ecology of Nearctic-Neotropical migratory birds. The terms "North America," "wintering," "spring migration," and "fall migration" are inappropriate when referring to these birds, as they are inaccurate for their life cycle outside of temperate regions.