Recent Ornithological Publications. 117 



only occasionally (that is, in some particular groups or species) 

 ossified, even in adult birds. A plate containing seventeen 

 figures accompanies the paper, and we must especially recommend 

 to our readers' notice the beautiful execution of them. They 

 quite put to shame any osteological figures we have lately seen 

 produced in this country ; and it is only fair that we should 

 mention that the artist's name is P. W. van der Weyer of Utrecht. 

 A singular mistake, however, is made in one point : " Fig. 15 " 

 represents, and that very accurately, the anterior portion of the 

 sternum of Gi-us cinerea — not Cygnus musicus, as stated in the 

 article (page 16) and in the explanation of the plate. 



Professor Schlegel's monograph of the Kingfishers of the 

 Dutch Indies "^ is a meritorious work. The text is, unfortunately, 

 though naturally, in Dutch; but a "Revue Synoptiquc" in 

 French of the species mentioned is added. This is in a great mea- 

 sure taken from the author's catalogue of Alcedines in the Leyden 

 Museum, already noticed in 'The Ibis' (1864, pp. 124, 125). 

 An important feature of the book is the profuseness of its illustra- 

 tions. Of the nine and thirty species of Alcedinidce which, 

 according to Prof. Schlegel's computation, are found in the 

 eastern possessions of the King of the Netherlands, all but two 

 are figured, and some of them six or seven times, — though it 

 must be remembered that the " species " to which this honour is 

 accorded are, in the estimation of most ornithologists, capable and 

 deserving of difi'erentiation far more than our author will allow — 

 as, for instance, Tanysiptera dea, which is made to include at least 

 four other forms which have been characterized as separate 

 species. 



We cannot understand why there is so little in common 

 between English naturalists and the English public. It scarcely 

 ever happens that a professedly popular work on natural history, 

 published in this country, is not full of blunders more or less 

 ridiculous, the reason being of course that the author is not equal 



* De Vogels van Nederlandsch Indie, beschreven en afgebeeld door H. 

 ScHLEGEL. Haarlem : 1864. 4to. 



