Alberta birds to be renamed as ornithological society makes 'extraordinary' decision

A number of bird species in Alberta will soon be recognized by new names, as the world's largest professional organization for ornithologists has decided to rename all birds in the United States and Canada named after people.

The American Ornithological Society announced last week that all birds in its geographic jurisdiction named after a person will undergo a name change in 2024, in a decision that affects as many as 80 species.

Some birds are named after people who have associations with the past that are exclusionary and harmful, according to the society.

"I was just shocked to realize that we're honouring these people by continuing to call these birds by their names," said Fisher Stephenson, a Mount Royal University student and bird watcher from Cochrane, Alta.

Stephenson made a short film last year called 142 about this topic.

Fisher Stephenson is a bird watcher from Cochrane, Alta., who made a short film about the historical figures who inspired some birds' names. (Submitted by Fisher Stephenson)

"Birds exist all over the world, in every single continent. There's almost nowhere in the world you can go where you don't find birds. And I see no reason why a bird should hold a name that honours a person who used to oppress a certain group of people," he said.

Stephenson said he did receive backlash from people who felt the name changes were unnecessary.

Nicola Koper, co-author of Best Places to Bird in the Prairies, said the number of species that will be renamed is "extraordinary," but it is not the first time a bird has been renamed.

"I think what's really interesting about southern Alberta is that it's the home of the very first species that was renamed because it was named after a person," Koper said on the Calgary Eyeopener.

That grassland bird is now known as the thick-billed longspur. Its original name honoured John P. McCown, an amateur naturalist who later became a general in the Confederate Army during the U.S. Civil War —  the bird's former name was perceived as a painful link to slavery and racism.

LISTEN | What the ornithological society decision means for Prairie birds: 

Each bird will be renamed to something that is visually descriptive.

Koper added she thinks the name changes will make it easier for people to learn more about the birds around them, and will make natural sciences more inclusive.

"If I'm driving through Calgary and I tell you I saw a yellow-headed blackbird, you don't even need to look at a picture to know what I saw. But if I tell you that I saw Cooper's hawk, that doesn't tell you anything about how spectacular it is," she said.

There are about 37 bird species in Alberta that will undergo a name change, said Jocelyn Hudon, curator of ornithology at the Royal Alberta Museum in Edmonton.

"Seven of those are represented in galleries … there'll be a need to revise and to relearn some of these new names," Hudon said.

The City of Calgary's Inglewood Bird Sanctuary said it will adjust its educational programs and signage once the American Ornithological Society changes the names.

In addition to changing the existing names, the society said it will be updating the process by which English names are selected for bird species.