Sialia sialis. 



4G2 PEOCEEDIXGS OF UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM. 



very short, being about of the same length ns the commissure and the 

 middle toe with chiw, only making one-fifth of the length of the wings. 



Toes stout, the middle one not un- 

 usually lengthened. Tail moderate; 

 slightly forked. 



Remarks. — I have not been able to 

 examine an example of Grandahi 

 coelicolor Hodgs., which Mr. See- 

 bohm includes within this genus. I 

 have, however, very strong doubts as 

 to the correctness of this arrange- 

 ment, which seems mainly based on 

 the blue color of the plumage. If the 

 figure given by Wolf in Gray and Mitchell's "Genera of Birds" (I, 

 1^1. 50, fig. 3) is correct, the Grandala is a widely different genus, char, 

 acterized, in contradistinction to Sialia, by the rictal bristles being obso- 

 lete, by the lengthened bill, and the exposed openings of the nostrils, 

 the fore part of the membrane of which is not covered by feathers, also 

 by the scutellated and lengthened tarsi, which are considerably longer 

 than the middle toe. Besides, the toes are stated to be slender, and the 

 tail to be strongly emarginared. It appears to me that Grandala is 

 badly placed even within the same group as Sialia. I cannot think it 

 will be impossible to find a more i)roper place near one of the Old World 

 forms, although I shall not make any attempt without having examined 

 the bird itself. 



Group SAXICOLE.E.* 



Saxicola Bechst. 



<il803.—Saxicola Bechst. Orn. Taschb. p. 216 (nee Forstcr, 1817). 

 1816.— FiUflora Leach. Cat. Mara. Birds Brit. Mus. p. - . 

 1817.— ffi»mn//ie Vieill. Analyse, p. 43. 



1822. — Rupicola Naumann. Nat. Vog. Dentschl. ii, p. iv (wee Briss). 

 18'23. — JEnanthe Vieill. Faune Fraiif . p. 31. 



18075 



S<(xicola ocanthe. 



*Dr. Stejneger was not given time to prepare his remarks on this group. It em- 

 braces biit one American genus, however {Sairicola Bechst.), the synonymy of which is 

 given above. Other genera which he wouUl refer to this group are the "PalBeogean" 

 Pratincola and ItiiticUla, but whether he would include others, I do not know. — R. R. 



