604 BUPHAGUS SKUA, THE SKUA. 



of his genera. Guided by these considerations, in the Proceedings of the Philadelphia 

 Academy, as above, I revived the name BuplnKjus, and gave it that precedence over 

 other appellations to which it is entitled. 



" Stc7xvrariit,'i, Briss., 17G0,"' is the name which has lately been most frequently em- 

 ployed for this subgenus. But this is clearly an error ; for the type of Stereorarius, as is 

 evident by P.iisson's elaborate description, is the Lams jJaraniticus of Linna'us, and not 

 the catarrhactes. Regarding this latter species, it is surprising that Brissou should 

 have been so far at fault in his estimation of its affinities as to scjiarate it from its con- 

 geners, and range it with the true Gulls under the name of LarusfascuH. If Htcreorarius 

 is to be used at all, it must be for the group of which jxnYfs/ffVvf.s is typical. 



Catharaeia of Briiuuich (17(54) has as its type catarrhactoi, though all the other species 

 known to that autlior are included in it. But this name, besides being antedated by 

 Buphagits, is also anticipated by Catarractes of Moehring, a name applied to a pygojjo- 

 dous genus, of which Uria troile is the type, and which has been accepted and employed 

 by late writers, as Cassin, Bryant, and others. This is in effect the same word as Briin- 

 nich's Caiharacta, both having the same root, viz, Kara and i)/yvv/ji, whence KarapixiKrt/r, 

 "a robber or despoiler." Briinnich's spelling of the word might perhaps lead ns to 

 suppose it derived from' KaOaiixj, "to cleanse or purify ;" but this is evidently not the 

 case — the latinizatiou of the word formed from the latter root giving us cathartes, Illi- 

 ger's genus of American Vultures. Therefore, unless we allow a varying orthography 

 of the same word to stand for two different gen(;ra, Briinnich's name must be super- 

 seded. Besides the above spelling we also find cataracfa, cataracfes, caiarracta, catarr- 

 liarfa, and catarrh act es. The last is the proi)er orthography, as is evident from the 

 etymology of the word. 



Lestris nf Illiger ( 1811) is based upon jiarasitica, and, although used subsequently by 

 many authors for the present subgenus, has really no connection with it. 



Megalcstri'i, Bonaparte (1H56), is based upon the catarrhactes, and is strictly its only 

 synonym. The choice is therefore between Megalestris and Buphatjas. Of these I pre- 

 fer the latter, which I shall continue to use as heretofore. 



BUPHAGUS SKUA, (Biuim.) Coues. 



Tlie Skua. 



a. slcua. 



Catarracfa aldrorandi, Will., Orn. 265. 



Slcua hojcri, Ray, Syn. Av. 128. 



Lariisfiisciis, Bmss'., Orn. vi, 1760, 165.— Scop., Bemerk. Nat. 1770, 90. 



Caiarracta fusca. Leach, Syst. Cat. 1816, 40. 



Larus varins sire skua, Bkiss., Orn. vi, 1760, 167 (juv.). 



Laras catarractes, Sciiaeff., Mns. Orn. 1779, 63, pi. 39, 



Catharaeia sl.na, BniJNN., Orn. Bor. 1764, 33. 



Caiarracta slua, Rktz., Fn. Suec. 1800, 161.— Bp., Cat. Meth. Ucc. 79; Rev. Crit. 1850, 202. 



Catarractes sinia. Pall., Zoog. R.-A. ii, 1811, 309. — Steph., Gen. Zool. xiii, 1825, 215. 



Cataractes skica, Macgil., Man. ii, 1842, 255. 



Cataracia skua, Bp.,List, 183H, 63. 



Lestris skua, BiiKiui, Vog. Deutschl. 1831, 716. 



Buphagus skua, CocES, Pr. Pliila. Acad. 1863, 125 ; Pr. Ess. lust, v, 1868, 305. 



Stereorarius {Buphagus) skua, Coues, Key, 1872, 309. 



Cataractes vulgaris, Flem., Brit. Aniiu. — , 137. 



Larus catarractes, Linx., 8vst. Nat. i, 1766, 226 (based on Will., Ray & Briss., supra; 



Edw., 149, &c.).— Gm., Syst. Nat. i, 1788, 603.— Lath., Iiid. Orn. ii, 1790, 818. 

 Lestris catarractes, III., Prod. 1811, 272.— Temm., Man. 1815, 511 ; ii, 1820, 792 ; iv, 1840, 



494.— Fai{., Prod. Isl. Orn. 1822, 102.— Boie, Isis, 18<!2, 562.— Jen., Man. 1835, 



280.— Eyt.. Cat. Br. B. 51.— Bp., Svu. 1828, No. 304.— Nutt., Man. ii, 1834, 312.— 



Keys. & Blas., Wirb. Eur. 1840, 239.— Naujl, V. D. x, 1640, 470, pi. 270.— Schl., 



Rev. Crit. 1844, 84. 

 Lestris eatharactes, Bkeilm, Naturg. Eur. Vcig. 1823, 739. 

 Lestris eatharractes, Schinz, Eur. Fn. i, 1840, 387. 

 Lestris eatarrhaetes, Kaup, Sk. Ent. Eur. Thierw. 1829, 64. 

 Stereorarius catarrhactes, VH'IILL., Nouv. Diet. d'Hist. Nat. iv, 1817, 154; Fn. Frang. 1838, 



385.— Gray, Gen. of B. iii, 1849, 6.52; Cat. Br. B. 1863, 227.— Degl., Orn. Eur. 



ii, 1849, 289.— Blas., J. f. O. 1865, 384. 

 Stereorarius catarractes, Bp., Consp. Av. ii, 1856, 20G ; Tabl. Longip. Compt. Rend. xlii. 



770.— Lawr., Baird's B. N. A. 1858, 838.— Sciil., M. P.-B. iv, 1863, 45.— Elliot, 



B. N. A. ii, pi. 56. 

 Stereorarius cataractes, Selys-L., Fn. Belg. 1842, 155. 

 Stcrcorius eatharactes, Des Muks, Traitd Ool. 1860, 551. 



