880 



REVIEW. 

 A PRACTICAL HANDBOOK OF BRITISH BIRDS.* 



This Handbook, Part I of which has just been received is edited by 

 Mr. H. F. Witherby assisted by other authors in the various sections, 

 whose names should guarantee that the handbook will have as claimed, 

 easily accessible and reliable information concerning all British birds 

 dealt with in a scientific manner, yet capable of being understood by 

 beginners. 



'J'he first part was printed before the war but was held up and addenda 

 have had to be added on the cover. The Introduction explains concisely 

 the scope of the work a;nd a glossary of terms, some diagrams showing 

 various external parts of birds and how to measure are added. We then pass 

 on to a Key of Orders, profusely illustrated by diagrams to show the distinc- 

 tions followed by a Key to the families of Passeres and a key to the Genera 

 of the CorvidEB. It is explained in the introduction that these keys are not 

 intended to be used as means of identification, but only as guides, and must 

 be used in conjunction with descriptions. The rest of the part is taken up 

 with the Crows, Starlings, Oriole and some of the Finches, a key to the 

 Genera Fingillidae being given ; under each species is given the English and 

 binomial Latin names, the trinomial name being given if the species has 

 been divided into subspecies. 



For the benefit of Indian readers it is necessary to explain something 

 about the nomenclature. In 1912 " A Handlist of British Birds " was 

 written by some of the authors of this present work. The nomenclature 

 there adopted was based upon the tenth edition of Linnaeus (1758) and was 

 in conformity with the " International Rules of Zoological Nomenclature" 

 and the " opinions " of the Commission. This list altered many of the 

 names which had been in use in England and elsewhere for long past, 

 but it was hoped that uniformity in nomenclature would result from adopt- 

 ino' these " strict priority " names. Since 1912 not a few of these names 

 even have been altered again for one reason or another, and some 

 have had to be even altered back to the names originally largely 

 in vise, e.c/., Podiceps vice Colymhus for Grebes and Colymbus vice 

 Oavia for the Divers — on this ' Handlist ' the nomenclature in the hand- 

 book is based, but revised and brought up to date, but it is too much 

 to hope that even in the names in the Handbook will be final. By 

 cfoino- back to Linnseus Ed. X as a basis theoretically we should obtain 

 uniformity but practically uniformity is, we consider, impossible at any 

 rate for many years to come, even if all were agreed to accept this basis 

 (and some people and countries do not), for instance, great diversity of 

 opinion exists over Genera while the acceptance or not of any given 

 specific name is often not merely question of accepting the oldest name, 

 but whether that name is applicable and here individual opinion will arise. 



Under each species the descriptions of various plumages in detail and 

 their moults, measurements, structure such as relative length of quills, etc., 

 and colour of soft parts are given. The measurements of the wings of 

 male and female are given, but as a rule only the measurements of the bill 

 of the male which seems rather a pity ; for instance, in the case of the two 

 Nutcrackers (which only difler in tiaeir bills) the measurements of the male 



■•' A Practical Handbook of British Birds, edited by H. F. Witherby, M.B.E., P z.s.., 

 M.B.O.U. Authors of the various sections : Ernst Hartert, Ph. D., M B.o.u., Annie C, 

 Jackson, h.m.b.o-U., Rev. F. C. R. Jourdain, M.A., M. B.o.u., C Oldham, F.z.s., 

 M.B.O.U., Norman F. Ticehurst, M-A., f.r.cs., m.b.o.u. and the Editor. Witherby 

 &Co., London, in 18 parts, price Is', per part. 



