1 Reply by ser (edited by ser 06-11-2009 14:42:18)

  • ser
  • ser
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  • From: Staffordshire Ecological Recor
  • Registered: 24-09-2008
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Re: Preferred Common Name

Is there an option for choosing a preferred common name in the same way as the 'Preferred Taxon Name' because when I produce lists of species records within a polygon it looks a little strange when species with the same scientific name have different common names (due to being entered off different taxonomic lists)

Additionally is is possible to add common names to taxa e.g. Deschampsia cespitosa off the " VASCULAR PLANTS..." list doesn't have a common name - it only appears that D.caespitosa (off Recorder 3.3 list) is the only one with a common name.

I'm sure there are other examples, but this one is very annoying when species lists have the scientific name in the common name column

Additionally, if "Tufted Hair-grass" is entered at record entry, D.cespitosa subsp.cespitosa gets entered, which is inferred a precision not originally in the record!

Craig
Staffs Ecological Record

Craig Slawson
Staffordshire Ecological Record

ser's Website

2 Reply by Lynn Heeley

  • Lynn Heeley
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Re: Preferred Common Name

There is no agreed preferred common name for each species and it would likely be a very large piece of work for little conservation gain? I also doubt that agreement could actually be found.

Lynn

3 Reply by DGERC

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  • From: SWSEIC
  • Registered: 31-05-2006
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Re: Preferred Common Name

Just to chip in that I'm sure it's a common issue that all LRCs have when formatting reports.  I don't think this needs to be made into a massive piece of work (clearly it could be!) but more a matter of trying to get out a single common name for species from the information that is in the database already.  Every item on the preferred taxon lists have a preferred common name which could be used as the default common name, can we not build something to use the nameserver to get at it?  Some of the standard built-in reports actually spit out 'Preferred Common Name' (I presume using joins between copies of the ITN table).  Is there no way of implementing the same thing through the report wizard? Surely if the nameserver knows that when I ask for 'Eurasian Red Squirrel' then it should go and get records for 'Red Squirrel' from the R3 list, then the information it needs to spit out the preferred common name of 'Eurasian Red Squirrel' for both records exists already - its just building the links to get at it. 

I appreciate that using this might not be a 100% fix but it would surely clear up a lot of the common things that LRCs spend time correcting when reporting.

Mark Pollitt
SWSEIC (formerly DGERC)

DGERC's Website

4 Reply by davva

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  • From: Scotland
  • Registered: 03-11-2008
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Re: Preferred Common Name

Hi
along these lines we'd like to show the common name (where one exists) in our reports. Mark mentioned that some built-in reports have the ability to give a prefered common name. Does anyone know which reports these are. It would be good if I could copy the code in question into my own report.
Cheers
David

[color=blue]David Angel[/color]
[color=blue]Data Officer[/color]
[color=blue]The Wildlife Information Centre[/color]