Say’s Phoebe In Sage

Say’s Phoebe perched precariously on sage – Nikon D500, f7.1, 1/2000, ISO 500, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light

One year ago today I photographed this Say’s Phoebe in a desert area of Box Elder County in northern Utah as it perched precariously on sage. As I photographed this rufous bellied phoebe I observed it catching prey for its young that were up the hill begging to be fed.

Say’s Phoebes have an honorific common name. In 1825 French naturalist Charles Lucien Bonaparte described a specimen collected near Pueblo, Colorado and named this species after Thomas Say, an American entomologist, conchologist, and herpetologist. Say’s name is in both the common name, Say’s Phoebe, and the scientific name, Sayornis saya, of this species. That is how Say’s Phoebes got their name.

But the common name only tells us that this species is a phoebe and nothing more.

Adult Say’s Phoebe taking off from sage – Nikon D500, f7.1, 1/1600, ISO 500, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light

There is a movement to rename birds that were given honorific and eponymous common names and I support it.

Descriptive common names such as Broad-tailed Hummingbird, Marsh Wren, Red-eyed Vireo, or Black Phoebe make more sense and are more descriptive of the actual bird species than tacking the name of a human onto a bird. The movement also aims to rename birds whose honorific common names are associated with racism, and yes, I fully support that as well.

I think Rufous-bellied Phoebe would be a great name instead of Say’s Phoebe, with or without the hyphen. It is certainly more descriptive. Plus a name like Rufous-bellied Phoebe might make it easier for new birders to use to connect to this phoebe species.

Just a few thoughts on a Friday morning.

Life is good.

Mia

Click here to view more of my Say’s Phoebe photos plus facts and information about this species.