whicli will be a Genera of Bircls — will contain a good de- 

 scription and an excellent coloured plate of each genus ; 

 also a list of all tlie species known, with their synonymy. 



To make this Gencra as perfect and interesting as pos- 

 sible^ I intend going soon to America, to study particularly 

 the habits of the birds which are found in that interestiug 

 part of the workl. 



2,456 genera aud 1],U30 species of birds are mentioned in 

 my Catalogue ; though, according to my views, many of these 

 genera aud sjjecies must be eventually aboUshed. 



The sub-genera are placed as genera, because the differ- 

 ences constituting a sub-genus are not sufficient to take 

 tliem away from the preceding genus, or more than suffi-' 

 cient to make a new genus ; and I believe that it does harm 

 to ornithological science to multiply the genera and the 

 sub-genera, as it has been the practice to do lately. What is 

 wanted now, is to simplify, as much as possible, the classifi- 

 cation, to make this study easy to beginners. 



I have nearly adopted the revision of genera made by 

 Messrs. Sclater and Salvin iu the "Nomenclator/^ and those 

 of Mr. Sharpe in the " Catalogue of Birds/^ Vol. I. and II. 



The classification I have followed is quite my own. I 

 begin with the Struthione.s, and not the Passeres (birds 

 considered as the most perfectly organized). My reasous 

 for this are, that the Struthiones are birds which are more 

 nearly alHed to the fossil species known, and I look upon 

 them as the most ancient type of birds ; as I consider the 

 TrocJiili as the most recent, and probably the most perfectly 

 organized, according to modern ideas. 



Besides, I do not attach great importance to a classifi- 

 cation merely as to the point at which it begins ; it is more 

 essential that, the starting-point once being found, all should 

 follow as naturally as possible, and this result I thiuk I 

 have obtained. 



I do not beheve it is perfect. On the contrary, I think 

 there is yet much to do to make our ornithological classiti- 

 catiou as satisfactory as that of the lusects — Colcujjtera, for 



