Koelz Collection of birds from southern Asia. Systematic studies 

 by Austin L. Rand, Chief Curator of Zoology, of Philippine and 

 African birds resulted in descriptions of seven new races from the 

 Philippines and, surprisingly, two more new species found in the 

 collections made in 1954 by the Conover Angola Expedition. 

 His studies of the shrike family for Peters' Check-list is nearing 

 completion, and a short paper on the status of the migrant shrike 

 of southern Florida was submitted for publication. The monu- 

 mental Days with Birds by V. G. L. van Someren was edited by 

 Chief Curator Rand and published by the Museum, and a popular 

 book by him, American Water and Game Birds, was published by 

 E. P. Dutton and Company. Mrs. Ellen T. Smith, Associate, 

 assisted in work on various collections of Philippine birds. 



In the Division of Amphibians and Reptiles, Curator Inger, in 

 collaboration with Dr. Bernard Greenberg, of Roosevelt University, 

 completed a study of the reproductive cycle of certain African 

 frogs. Assistant Hymen Marx prepared a paper on Egyptian snakes 

 of the genus Psammophis and a key to the reptiles of Egypt. The 

 Curator Emeritus of Zoology, Dr. Karl P. Schmidt, completed 

 a study of Philippine and New Guinea crocodilians, of Trinidad 

 coral snakes, and of Peruvian lizards of the genus Dicrodon and, 

 in collaboration with Stanley Rand, a manuscript on snakes of 

 the genus Ninia. He also visited museums in London, Paris, and 

 Brussels to examine type-specimens in connection with the report 

 on Congo amphibians to which he and Inger have contributed. 



Loren P. Woods, Curator of Fishes, spent two months examining 

 collections of various museums in California in order to complete 

 a revisionary work on the pomacentrid fish of American waters of 

 the Atlantic and Pacific. Study of the marine fishes of the Gulf 

 of Mexico and the Atlantic and Pacific coasts of Central America 

 were continued throughout the year. Curator Woods and Curator 

 Inger completed their project on the cave, spring, and swamp fishes 

 of the Family Amblyopsidae of central and eastern United States. 

 Miss Pearl Sonoda, Assistant, identified small collections of in- 

 coming specimens. Mrs. Marion Grey, Associate, completed a 

 manuscript based on her studies of deep-sea fishes collected by the 

 research vessel M/V Oregon and began study of the genus Anoplo- 

 gaster of the Dana Collection and a survey of deep-sea fauna found 

 below a depth of 900 meters. Dr. Edward M. Nelson, Associate, 

 made anatomical studies of the piranha fishes of tropical America. 

 Several local field trips were taken to further a handbook of fishes of 

 the Chicago region. Russell ^Carlson, summer assistant, prepared 

 keys and illustrations for the handbook. 



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