Vol. XII, pp. 109-114 April 30, 1898 



PROCEEDINGS 



OF THE 



BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON 



RANDOM NOTES ON THE NOMENCLATURE OF 

 THE CHIROPTERA. 



BY T. S. PALMER. 



A careful examination of the names of bats now in common 

 use shows that many changes must be made before the nomen- 

 clature will lie placed on a stable basis. . Some of these changes 

 have already been pointed out by Miller in his recent revision 

 of the Vespertilionidae.* But errors no less glaring still pass 

 current in other families, and it is the purpose of this paper to 

 call attention to a few which have come to light while compiling 

 a list of the family and generic names of Chiroptera. 



Bats are now usually divided into six families: Emballo- 

 nuridse, Nycteridre, Pl^dlostomatidae, Pteropodidte, Rhinolo- 

 phidse, and Vespertilionidse. A rigid adherence to the rule of 

 priority requires a change in at least two of these names, as well 

 as in the designations of several subfamilies, genera, and species. 



NOCTILIONIDiE ( Emballonuridie). 



The free-tailed bats received the commonly accepted name of 

 Emballonuridse from Dobson in 1875. f Gray, however, in 1821 % 



* North American Fauna, No. 13, 1897; Ann. & Mag. Nat. Hist., Gtli 

 ser. , XX, p. 379, 1897. Most of the references to generic and specific 

 names were furnished Mr. Miller by the Biological .Survey of the U. S. 

 Dept. of Agriculture, the generic names forming part of my forthcoming 

 index to the genera of mammals. 



t Ann. & Mag. Nat. Hist., 4th ser., XVI, p. 317, Nov., 1875. 



X London Medical Repository, XV, p. 299, Apr. 1, 1821. 



26-Bior,. Soc. Wash., Vol. XII, 1898 (109) 



