Template talk:WikiProject Animals

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[edit] Image

There probably aren't that many images with nice transparent backgrounds like the elephant one, but I just don't like the idea of using an elephant, or, more generally, a mammal, as a picture. For one thing mammals make up only the tiniest portion of the animals. But there also seems to be a general misunderstanding of what an animal actually is, and by using an elephant or other mammal we seem to reinforce the idea that 'animal' is basically synonymous with 'mammal'. Others may think that animals are the amniotes or the vertebrates. I think we should use a picture of an animal not covered by any of our 'descendant' WikiProjects', like a coral or starfish for example. Richard001 (talk) 08:42, 10 March 2008 (UTC)

I agree when talking about the Animal article. But these banners are for editors, not readers, so the pictures should be simple and explanatory, not educational. In the case of banners, I think the a mammal is fine. The picture you replaced it with makes it appear like the project is for WikiProject Arthropods. Justin ^chat 15:31, 18 March 2008 (UTC)

I don't follow. The picture is not an arthropod, it's an annelid, a taxa for which there is no WikiProject besides ours. Readers look at talk pages as well, and many editors aren't experts on animal taxonomy. We really need to disambiguate ourselves from WikiProject Mammals, especially for those who think mammals and animals are synonyms. Richard001 (talk) 21:51, 18 March 2008 (UTC)

Sorry for the delay, real life has kept me busy. My point was, the photo is small and VERY difficult to recognize. Readers may look at talk pages, but talk pages aren't intended for them. We certainly shouldn't go about using talk pages to educate, as their purpose is to inform and collaborate.

I realize there is a big problem with mammals and animals being thought of as synonyms, but again, recognition is key for these banners is to inform the user that a Wikiproject dealing with the subject exists. I like your idea of avoiding the common "mammal = animal" argument, but I don't think we should avoid using any picture covered by a subproject. For instance, is easily recognizable as an animal, but few are going to know it's a Gastropod, so I don't think it's necessarily a bad thing to use the photo, even though there is a Gastropod Wikiproject already. Justin ^chat 17:38, 31 March 2008 (UTC)

As long as it's not a mammal... Richard001 (talk) 05:54, 1 April 2008 (UTC)