6 EXPLANATIONS. 



upon the valuable collection made by my brother, Capt. B. F. 

 Goss, and now on display in the Milwaukee Public Museum. 



The five letters, B., R, C, G. and U., each followed by a 

 number, stand respectively for Prof. Spencer F. Baird's Cata- 

 logue of 1858, Mr. Robert Ridgway's Catalogue of 1881, Dr. 

 Elliott Coues' Check List of 1882, ray Catalogues of 1883 and 

 1886, and the American Ornithologists' Union Check List of 

 1886. The dash after any of these letters shows that the bird 

 is not contained in that list. 



The species are distinguished by consisting of two terms, the 

 subspecies of three terms; for example: 



Merula migratoria. 



AMERICAN ROBIN. 



Merula migratoria propinqua. 



WESTERN ROBIN. 



The dimensions of the birds and eggs, as given, represent 

 their approximate average measurements in inches and hun- 

 dredths. 



Directions. — "Length:" Distance from tip of bill to end of longest tail 

 feather. "Stretch of wing:" Distance from tip to tip of outspread wings. 

 "Wing:" Distance from the bend or carpal angle of the wing to the end of the 

 longest primary. "Tail:" Distance from the root of the longest tail feather or 

 "pope's nose" to its tip. "Tarsus:" Distance between the joint of the tarsus 

 with the leg above and the lower edge of the lowermost tai'sal scutella In front. 

 "Bill:" Distance from the tip of the bill in a straight line to extreme base of 

 culmen. In the description of colors, the "leg" embraces the tarsus. 



In the Glossary, I have mainly followed tke definitions of or- 

 nithological terms in Mr. Ridgway' s "Nomenclature of Colors. ' ' 



I am indebted to Dr. J. A. Allen, Mr. Robert Ridgway and 

 Capt. Chas. Bendire for valuable information kindly furnished. 



N. S. Goss. 

 The Goss ORNixHOLOGicAr, Department. 



ROOMS : 

 EAST WING, CAPITOL BUILDING. 



Topelca, Kansas, February 1st, 1S91, 



