296 feecent Literature. [ZOE 
On the Color- Pattern of the Upper Tail-Coverts in Colaptes au- 
ratus. By FRANK M. CHAPMAN. Bull. Am. Mus. Nat. Hist., iii, 
No. 2, pp. 311-314. Mr. Chapman has discovered an interesting. 
variation in the marking of the upper (and to some extent of the 
lower) tail-coverts of Colaptes dependent upon age. In young 
birds the feathers are barred, while the adults are inclined to have 
black feathers with white edges. This latter phase, Mr. Chapman 
finds, may be acquired by a moult directly from the barred feathers, 
or through successive moults. The various modifications of pat- 
tern are shown ina plate which accompanies the article. 
COA. 
On the Birds observed near Corpus Christi, Texas, during parts 
of March and April, 1897. By FRANK M. CuapMANn. Bull. Am. 
Mus. Nat. Hist., ili, No. 2, pp. 315-328. “This paper is designed 
to supplement that portion of Mr. Beckham’s which relates to the 
birds of the vicinity of Corpus Christi.’’ Annotations are made 
on species of interest. The explanation of the curved bill of the 
avocet is worthy of especial note. One new subspecies, Cardinalis _ 
cardinalis canicaudus, is described. op re 
Morphology of the Avian Brain. By C. H. Turner. Journ. 
Comp. Neurology, i, No. 1, No. 2, pp. 107-132. A very important 
contribution to a hitherto much neglected subject is made in this 
paper. The author has done careful work on a comparatively large 
amount of material, and has formed the basis for future work in this 
department. In his general scheme of classification based on the 
study of the avian brain, he coincides with that proposed by Dr. 
Shufeldt some time since in the Journal of Morphology. According 
to this scheme Corvus heads the list of passerine birds. c. A. K. 
Note on the Evolution of the Upright Tail in the Domestic Dog. 
By Dr. JosepH L. Hancock. American Naturalist, Sept., 1891, 
p. 845. The upright tail of the dog is supposed to have been ac- 
quired pari passu with the evolving intelligence of the animal under. 
the influence of domestication, as a means of expressing emotions. 
Ce ae 
The Ibis, October, 1891. In. ‘‘ Ornithological Notes,” by Frank _ 
E. Beddard, M. A., a description is given of the curiously modified — 
tongue of Zosterops with a figure of Z. simplex. Also a detailed. 
