List of Birds from the vicinity of Calcutta. 33 



versed in the literature of zoology and a good observer of facts, 

 to the curatorship of the Asiatic Society^s Museum at Calcutta, 

 has been a fortunate event for Indian natural history. Much had 

 indeed been eifected by the labours of Franklin, Sykes, Jerdon, 

 Elliot, Hodgson and others, but their observations were in many 

 cases unreduced, and we look to Mr. Blyth to correct their syno- 

 nymy and to incorporate their facts into the exact systems of 

 modern zoology. 



In India, however, the best zoologists lie under a disadvantage 

 from the want of scientific works, while their fellow-labourers at 

 home are equally inconvenienced by the scarcity of authenticated 

 specimens from India, so that many doubts arise in connexion 

 with the identification of species. In order to the clearing up of 

 some of these, I subjoin such remarks and queries as have oc- 

 curred to me in perusing Mr. Blyth's paper, and shall feel grate- 

 ful to him or any other zoologist who can throw light upon them. 



No. 1 of Mr. Blyth's list (Annals, vol. xii. p. 90) for aJexandriniis 

 read alexandri. 



3. Paleornis hengalensis ; the earliest legitimate name for this is 

 P. cyanocephalus (Lin.). 



6. Does Mr. Blyth here imply that the Hobby of Bengal is really 

 the Falco suhbuteo (and not F. aldrovandi, as he supposed in Journ. 

 As. See. Beng. vol. xi. p. 161), or does F. aldrovandi also inhabit 

 Bengal } 



In the Journ. As. Soc. Beng. vol. xi. p. 789, Mr. Blyth says that 

 the Falco hengalensis, Briss., of India is distinct from the so-called 

 Hierax (it should not be written lerax) ccerulescens of Java and the 

 Malay countries. If this be so, the Indian bird is the true Falco 

 ccerulescens of Linnseus (founded on Edwards, pi. 108), and the Ma- 

 lay species might be called Hierax malayensis. An exact description 

 of the Indian bird is desirable, as most of the specimens in our mu- 

 seums are Malayan. 



9. The " Astur" dussumieri, as well as the Australian A. approxi- 

 mans and A. cruentus, belong unquestionably to Accipiter and not to 

 Astur, as is evident on comparing them with the types of these two 

 genera. I consider A. dussumieri to be the Falco badius, Gm. (Brown, 

 111. Zool. pi. 3), and the latter specific name should therefore be used. 



16. Spizaetus niveus belongs to the genus Limnaetus, Vig. The 

 true Spizaetus of Vieillot is an American genus. 



(The Spizaetus alhogularis, Flyth, Journ. As. Soc. Ben^. vol. xi. 

 p. 45 6, is the Astur kieneri, Geoff. St. Hilaire in ' Magazin de Zoologie,' 

 ser. 1. pi. 35. It will now stand as Limnaetus kieneri (Geoff.).) 



23. " Hyptiopus, Hodgson (olim Baza, Hodgson)." Mr. Hodg- 

 son having defined and published a number of new genera with La- 

 tinized Indian names attached, was afterwards led to disapprove of 

 these names and to substitute words of classical origin in their place. 

 I must venture to remark upon this point that such a change was 

 quite unnecessary, and it would have been far better not to have 



Ann. <Sf May. N. Hist. Vol. xiii. D 



