524 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HLST. SOCIETY, Vol. XXT L 



Perhaps the most difficult point for the young ornithologist to 

 get over was the chronic inconsistency of all the standard books, 

 such as those of Jerdon, Hume, Blanford and Gates, etc. All 

 these authors at times accepted the smallest of differences between 

 adjoining races as sufficient reason for making them species, yet in 

 other instances, far greater geographical variations are passed over 

 in silence. A good example of this may be found in the Cuckoo 

 Shrikes. Here we have the dark Grey Ciickoo Shrike (Camiiophcuia 

 irnelanoschista') and the Pale Grey Cuckoo Shrike (C, melanoi'tera) 

 given the status of species, yet under the one name of Graucalus 

 macei we have lumped together the small bird from Ceylon, the 

 large one from Northern India, and the bird from Siam and 

 Burma, which differs utterlv in havino- the female the same as the 

 male, instead of barred on the chest and throat. 



The above are mereh' odd instances cited from amongst an 

 unfortunately large number of similar cases, but will suffice to 

 shew that trinomials are not only necessary, but \Aill actually help 

 the learner to identify the birds he comes across. Also they will 

 shew him how important it is for the Field Observer to make the 

 most careful notes to be attached to each specimen he collects, for 

 without these data neither he himself nor any ]\Iuseum Ornitho- 

 logist will be able to make a correct interpretation of what he sees. 

 Thus the modern Museum Naturalist, as I said in the first lines of 

 this article, is absolutely dependent on the work of the Field 

 Naturalist, and according to the latter's keen powers of observa- 

 tion, accurate recording and ample notes, will be the value of the 

 deductions the former can draw. 



