Spelling of vernacular names

[Piotr Naskrecki]

Greetings,

Since we are on the subject of vernacular names I would like to ask a somewhat related question regarding the proper spelling of vernacular names in English. Should vernacular names be capitalized, and if so, should all component words be capitalized or just the first one? For example, the vernacular name of Rhinostomus barbirostris could be spelled the Bearded Weevil, the Bearded weevil, or the bearded weevil. Which one of these is the correct one?

Cheers,
Piotr
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Piotr Naskrecki, Ph. D.
Director, Invertebrate Diversity Initiative
Conservation International  (http://www.conservation.org)
Museum of Comparative Zoology, Harvard University
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