'114 Mr. Vigors' s Reply to some Observations 



The name of M. Vieillot follows in order. To him science is 

 indebted for the first institution of the genera Macrocercus and 

 Plyctolophus among the Psittacidce} for he also, — to quote the 

 words of the critick of the •' Dictionnaire" against himself, — has 

 ^'overcharged this department of ornithology with new and useless 

 names." In what manner these groups or any other divisions 

 which that naturalist may have noticed in this family interfere 

 with Dr. Horsfield's and my groups, 1 have yet to learn. 



Of all the naturalists who have paid attention to the PsittacidcBy 

 M. Le Vaillant went the furthest in indicating the natural groups of 

 the family. Three out of nine of the new genera named by Dr. 

 Horsfield and myself conjointly, or by myself solely, have been 

 pointed out by him. These groups indeed exhibit such strong 

 marks of distinction, that they could scarcely have escaped so dis- 

 cerning and sciehtifick an observer as M. Le Vaillant. I can only 

 wonder at his having passed over the other groups without notice, 

 such for instance as the Trichoglossiy the structure of whose tongue 

 appears to have been long familiar to ornithologists. Had he given 

 scientifick instead of provincial names to the groups which he 

 pointed out, my task in referring to his labours would have con- 

 sisted only in quoting these names, as I have quoted those of M. 

 Vieillot or M. Illiger. But it was not M. Le Vaillant's custom, 

 nor was it consistent with his views, to designate his subdivisions 

 by the usual terms of science. It does not however follow, that, 

 because he was inimical to scientifick names, others should be 

 debarred from conferring them. And it consequently may be 

 seen that some of the best known and most interesting groups in 

 ornithology are those which M. Le Vaillant first pointed out, but 

 which succeeding naturalists united more uniformly by the usual 

 technicalities to the ranks of science. I shall instance the genera 

 Indicator^ Phoenicophaus^ and Coccyzus of M. Vieillot, which cor- 

 respond with the groups IndicateurSy Malcohas, and Couas pre- 

 viously pointed out by M. Le Vaillant. When in the course of 

 my inquiries I had occasion to refer to the groups which had been 

 already noticed by M. Le Vaillant under the names of Perruches 

 d queue enjieche^ Perruches a large queue, and Perruches- Aras^ 

 I followed the long-established and approved of practice of 



