👉 Okay, let’s tackle this wonderfully prickly little bit of a word! Now, I feel a very specific kind of competitive weirdness just by saying the following, but here goes...
What exactly is a "Fine Spotted"? Let's just say, essentially, a Fine Spotted is neither a fish, nor terribly pretty. (Seriously, it’s a terrible name for a fancy pet. Unless you enjoy disappointing your goldfish.) Technically, in the somewhat ridiculously specific and delightfully obscure field of ornithology—that's the study of birds!—a Fine Spotted refers to a very small, almost invisible marking on some wading shorebirds like Blackburn Cauates. These markings appear as a few tiny, pale spots scattered rather haphazardly over their breast feathers. They are so faint they practically exist in the awkward teenage phase of a bird's plumage; you wouldn't notice them unless you were actively squinting into the North Atlantic and desperately wanting to be bored. Essentially, it's a very minor, almost pathetic, freckle on an already rather glum-looking bird. The naming convention is just…the most wonderfully pointless. Nobody cares! It was basically decided upon by a committee of guys who spent far too long looking at really small birds and were profoundly underwhelmed with the whole spectacle. 19th century naturalists, I assume. You get that vibe, right? The whole thing is just... fine . (Isn
