376 BULLETIN 50, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM. 



(2) " That the meniber.s of the Coerebidic do not form a homogeneous 

 group, but contains at least three well-marked types," 



Leaving out the genera Diglossa^ Diglomojyis^ Dacnldea^ Ateleodac- 

 nis^ Oreoirianes^ and Conirostrum^ whose internal structure has not, to 

 m}' knowledge, been investigated, it is obvious from Mr. Lucas's obser- 

 vations that the remaining Ccerebidsw comprise three (|uite distinct 

 groups, whose distinctive characters are as follows: 



a. Crop small or absent; tongue bifid; dorsal pteryla l)roader; feathers shorter, more 

 compact. 

 h. Crop present but small; tongue fringed; intestinal convolutions siu^iple. 



Chlorophanes, Cyanerpes, Dacnis. 

 bh. Crop absent; tongue brushy; intestinal convolutions extremely complicated. 



Coereba. 



aa. Crop well developed; tongue trifid; dorsal pteryla narrower; feathers longer, 



looser Glossiptila. 



"In their tongue," says Mr. Lucas, "the Coerebidse are markedly 

 different from the Mniotiltida?, but it is largely a difference of degree 

 rather than of kind. They differ in toto from the Tanagrida\ are 

 quite distinct from the Drepanidaj, and tind their nearest relatives in 

 AcantJiorhynch us.^ 



"The relationship with the tanagers is not ver}^ close, although such 

 short-billed forms as Chlorophanes'^ and Dacnis, which unfortunatel}' 

 were not available, might bring the two groups a little closer. 



"In size, form, pttnylosis, structure of tongue, and pattern of con- 

 voltitions of alimentary canal, there is a strong resemblance l^etween 

 CiKveha [i. e., Cyanerpes] and AeantJiorhynch/iis [Meliphagidte], and so 

 far the two forms exhibit a most interesting case of parallelism. The 

 palate, too, on superlicial examination looks not unlike that of GJos- 

 slptila. . . . 



"Finally, it must be said that the mem])ers of the Coerebida? do not 

 form a homogeneous group, for the famil}' contains at least three well- 

 marked types, Cwrehal Cyanerpes]^ Certhiola[C(Breba]^ and Glossiptila, 

 and these types differ from one another in a very marked degree. 

 While Dacnis and Cldorophanes have not been examined l)y mo, the 

 figures of skulls and tongues of these genera indicate that they belong- 

 near Coereba [Cyane?'pes]. These genera form a well-marked group 

 containing those species nearest to the Mniotiltidte and chai'acterized 

 by a long, cleft, feathered, l)ut not suctorial tongue, small crop-like 

 dilatation of the (x^sophagus, and simply convoluted intestine. 



" Cer'thiola [ 6'avv^Jc/] has a bifid brushy tongue, no crop, extremely com- 

 plicated intestine, and produced angle to the mandible. The tongue 

 resembles that of some Meliphagidfe; and th(^ other characters are like 

 some found in the Drepanididse. GlossljdiUu with its loose ptilosis, 



^ I am inclined to regard Oreomanes as a Mniotiltine type, related to Conirostrum. 

 The bill of this genus is strongly suggestive of that of Ile/inakt. 

 ^A member of the Meliphagidee. 

 ^ Chlorophanes, however, is not a short-billed form. — R. R. 



