ornithologyst VS aviculturist

Question

Hi,Could somebody please explain (in a few words) the difference between the two?mus-te

Mister Micawber · Accepted Answer

An ornithologist studies birds; an aviculturist raises birds.
Aviculturists are interested in domestic pigeons; ornithologists are not.

MUSCOVITE · Answer

MM:
Thanks for the perfect answer!

MUSCOVITE · Answer

A couple of follow-up questions if I may.

(1) Aviculturist is to all appearences a very formal word ... I guess there are no "informal" Latin words in modern English :-)

How "close" is aviculturist to birdman?

Are there other common terms close enough to birdman?
I wonder if any of the following word combinations are commonly/occasionally used by native speakers:
"bird watcher", "bird lover", "bird fan", etc.

(2) On a slightly different note.
There are birdmen (birdwomen/birdpeople), dogmen, catmen (afaik). Could you add more to this list?

mus-te

Mister Micawber · Answer

MUSCOVITE(1) Aviculturist is to all appearences a very formal word ... I guess there are no "informal" Latin words in modern English :-)How "close" is aviculturist to birdman?

I have never heard 'birdman' except in the context of daredevils of the aerial sort. 'Birdwatcher' is the non-birdwatcher's term for 'birder'. 'Birders' are hobbyists, but some are ornithologists as well. Few are aviculturists, but many are twitchers. 'Bird lovers' simply have parakeets in their parlors and birdbaths in their gardens. The only bird fans I know cheer for the St. Louis Cardinals.

MUSCOVITE(2) On a slightly different note.There are birdmen (birdwomen/birdpeople), dogmen, catmen (afaik). Could you add more to this list?

I have nothing to add: they all sound odd to me. Catwoman is one of Batman's nemeses.

Anonymous · Answer

I'm a native English speaker in the US, and I've never heard or seen the word "aviculturist" before in my entire life. "Ornithologist" is heard in scientific contexts. "Bird watcher" and "bird lover" are often heard. "Bird fan" is a little unusual. The only time I've heard "bird man" is in the title "The Bird Man of Alcatraz," and in accounts of sightings of half-man, half-bird creatures that supposedly inhabit remote areas of the planet.

"Bird woman" would be unusual. "Bird person" might be heard, for example, in the sentence: "My girlfriend is a bird person. I'm more of a tropical fish person." "Cat/Dog man" would be unusual.

In general, the combination, "_____ man/woman", where there is an animal name in the blank is unusual, and would typically have a negative connotation. For example, leopard man, denotes a kind of witch doctor, and a dangerous one at that.

MUSCOVITE · Answer

Thank you for the VERY interesting comments, MM!
One more follow-up question for you.
It's about "twitcher". It must be derivated from the verb "to twitch"? This verb seems to have several meanings...
Which one "gave birth" to the term "twitcher"?

MUSCOVITE · Answer

VERY interesting comments, Anonymous! Thank you so much!

Now I see that I should have used "person", not "man/woman" in my yesterday's post.
Just to be on the safe side.... if you could check the following (hopefully "amended"?) word combinations/examples?

(1) "Do you have an aquarium at home? No, I am not much of a tropical fish person".
Btw, can I omit "tropical" in this and similar context?
Are there any (common enough) synonyms of "fish person"?
How about "Nick is an aquarium (sic!) keeper/owner/holder/enthusiast".... all the listed would sound odd to native speakers?

(2) You use "person" in the singular and "people" (not "~~persons~~") in the plural, e.g.
"All my close friends are fish people"?
"My cousins are avid cat people"

AnonymousIn general, the combination, "_____ man/woman", where there is an animal name in the blank is unusual, and would typically have a negative connotation. For example, leopard man, denotes a kind of witch doctor, and a dangerous one at that.

It is a very interesting and important point! I didn't see the difference between "a dog/cat person" and (sic!) "dog/cat man/woman" when sending my original post.

Again,

Mister Micawber · Answer

MUSCOVITEabout "twitcher". It must be derivated from the verb "to twitch"?

Yes: a sudden slight uncontrolled movement of your body. The term originated in the 1950s, when it was used for the nervous behaviour of Howard Medhurst, a British birdwatcher. There is a plethora of lexical information on the topic here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Birdwatching

Mister Micawber · Answer

MUSCOVITEIt is a very interesting and important point! I didn't see the difference between "a dog/cat person" and (sic!) "dog/cat man/woman" when sending my original post

And I still do not see any such difference between 'man' and 'person' there; to me it is only a slight matter of formality.
I'm not in agreement with all of Anon's post. For one thing, he should have heard 'aviculturist', just as he should have heard 'aviary'.

MUSCOVITE · Answer

Mister MicawberYes: a sudden slight uncontrolled movement of your body. The term originated in the 1950s, when it was used for the nervous behaviour of Howard Medhurst, a British birdwatcher. There is a plethora of lexical information on the topic here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Birdwatching

ornithologyst VS aviculturist

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