G. GENERAL NATURAL HISTORY AND ZOOLOGY. 311 



etc., in considerable number, and the whole work is prefaced 

 by the best account of the external anatomy of the birds in 

 general, and the special peculiarities of the feathers, bones, 

 etc., that has ever appeared in any American work. It also 

 contains an account of all the species of fossil birds belonging 

 to our fauna, furnished by Professor Marsh. 



NEW ORNITHOLOGICAL PERIODICAL. 



With commendable enterprise, Messrs. Maynard and Dean, 

 of Massachusetts, announce their intention of publishing a 

 periodical entitled American Ornithology ', to be devoted to 

 the scientific and popular history of birds. It is to appear 

 bi-monthly, at the rate of five dollars a year, and will consist 

 in part of popular articles on birds, and in part of more elab- 

 orate and technical memoirs. Each part will consist of about 

 forty pages, and will contain a colored plate of some new or 

 little-known American species. 



In view of the difficulty of sustaining special journals in this 

 country, this enterprise is one of no little daring, but will, 

 we trust, be justified by the result. At present there are but 

 two periodicals exclusively devoted to birds ; one of them, 

 the London Ibis, published quarterly, the other, the Journal 

 filr Omithologie, of Cabanis, published bi-monthly in Leipsic. 



EDWARDS ON NORTH AMERICAN BUTTERFLIES. 



The tenth part of the illustrated quarto publication upon 

 the butterflies of North America, by Mr. William H. Edwards, 

 has just made its appearance. This should have completed 

 the first volume, but, as better specimens have been obtained 

 of several species heretofore figured, it is Mr. Edwards's in- 

 tention to furnish these in a supplemental number, with the 

 title-page and indexes. 



This work, in addition to the numerous colored figures, and 

 the elaborate descriptions of various species and their varie- 

 ties, contains a synoptic list of North American butterflies, 

 embracing 509 species, of which, previous to 1852, only 137 

 were known as belonging to North America. Sixty-one spe- 

 cies were added between 1852 and 1860, and 311 since the 

 latter year. There is every reason to believe that, with a 

 thorough exploration of other regions of North America, 

 many more will be found and added to this number. 



