The word "gender" is relevant in biology, but only in the technical sense
to which Philip Veerman refers. Because scientific names are formed in
Latin, which is a language where nouns have gender, the name of each genus
is masculine, feminine or neuter. The species and race should be the same
gender (although as it's not real Latin and the names have been assigned by
scientists, not linguists, this is far from being universally true).
All accipiters (which is where we came in) are masculine in gender, while
all aquilas are feminine. Neuter genera (the word genus is itself neuter)
are relatively rare, but the flowerpecker genus to which mistletoebird
belongs, dicaeum, is an example.
Kevin Stracey
On 22 January 2013 11:29, Merrilyn Serong <> wrote:
> 'Sex' is the correct term in biology. The word 'gender' won't be found in
> biological texts or biological dictionaries.
> I wonder if some non-biologists who use the term 'gender' in biological
> contexts use it as a euphemism because they are uncomfortable with the word
> 'sex'. Just a thought.
> Cheers,
> Merrilyn
>
>
> On 22/01/2013 11:39 AM, Peter Shute wrote:
>
>> So it's just a convention, nothing to do with correct or incorrect
>> application of the current definition?
>>
>> Peter Shute
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>>> From:
>>> <>
>>> <>]
>>> On Behalf Of
>>> Merrilyn Serong
>>> Sent: Tuesday, 22 January 2013 11:20 AM
>>> To: <>
>>> Subject: Re: [Birding-Aus] sex, not gender
>>>
>>> In biology, the correct term to describe the sex of an animal
>>> is 'sex'.
>>> 'Gender' is not used.
>>> In particular, the term 'sex' is used in sexual dimorphism,
>>> sex characteristics, sex chromosomes, etc.
>>> Cheers,
>>> Merrilyn (wearing my biologist hat)
>>>
>>> On 22/01/2013 10:41 AM, wrote:
>>>
>>>> That is no longer true, at least in the U.S. While I was
>>>>
>>> taught that
>>>
>>>> words have gender, people have sex, the advent of gender
>>>>
>>> studies at universities
>>>
>>>> (they couldn't really call it sex studies) and increasing popular
>>>> use of gender has made it a proper usage , and it is now
>>>>
>>> accepted in
>>>
>>>> the major dictionaries.
>>>> Eric Jeffrey
>>>> Falls Church, VA 22043
>>>> In a message dated 1/21/2013 6:36:16 P.M. Eastern Standard
>>>> Time,
>>>> writes:
>>>>
>>>> Good explanation here:
>>>>
>>>> http://www.med.monash.edu.au/**gendermed/sexandgender.html<http://www.med.monash.edu.au/gendermed/sexandgender.html>
>>>>
>>>> Ian
>>>>
>>>> On 22/01/2013 9:55 AM, Peter Shute wrote:
>>>>
>>>>> How come?
>>>>>
>>>>> Peter Shute
>>>>>
>>>>> -----Original Message-----
>>>>>> From:
>>>>>> <>
>>>>>>
>>>>>> <>]
>>>>>> On Behalf Of
>>>>>> Jonny Schoenjahn
>>>>>> Sent: Sunday, 13 January 2013 6:35 PM
>>>>>> To: Birding-Aus
>>>>>> Subject: [Birding-Aus] sex, not gender
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Hi Denise,
>>>>>>
>>>>>> you were referring to the sex of those Accipiters, not
>>>>>>
>>>>> their gender.
>>>
>>>> Cutting a sociolinguistic explanation short: as fas as
>>>>>>
>>>>> ornithology
>>>
>>>> is concerned, birds have a sex, but no gender.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Cheers,
>>>>>> Jonny
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Jonny Schoenjahn
>>>>>> Perth WA
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Denise wrote on 12 January 2013:
>>>>>> "In the Top End size range for male Brown Goshawk is
>>>>>>
>>>>> 33-42 cm while
>>>
>>>> for Collared Sparrowhawk it's 30-40 cm (both genders)."
>>>>>> ==============================**=
>>>>>>
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>>>>>>
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>>>>>>
>>>>>> ==============================**=
>>>>>
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>>>>> to:
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>>>>>
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>>>>>
>>>> --
>>>> Prof. Ian Reid
>>>> School of Computer Science
>>>> University of Adelaide
>>>> Adelaide, 5005
>>>> ph: +61 (08) 83132135
>>>> www: http://cs.adelaide.edu.au
>>>>
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