Mr. O. Salvin on the Type 0/ Malaconotus leucotis. 443 



XXXIV. — Note on the Type of Malaconotus leucotis^ Swain- 

 son. By OsBERT Salvin, M.A,, F.R.S., &c. 



(Plate XI.) 



A FEW weeks ago Mr. R. B. Sharpe wrote to me asking if 

 the type of Malaconotus leucotis of Swainson was still extant 

 in the Cambridge Museum, and requesting me, if so, to ex- 

 amine the specimen with a view to ascertaining the validity of 

 the species. Not finding any bird so named along with the 

 other specimens of Swainsonian Malaconoti, I carefully read 

 the description (An. in Menag. p. 341. no. 180) ; and it at once 

 occurred to me that the bird was no Malaconotus at all, by.t 

 a member of the American genus Vireolanius. With this 

 clue I turned to Vireolanius, and there found a Swainsonian 

 specimen answering to the description so accurately that, in 

 spite of the loss of the original label, I had no doubt what- 

 ever that the type of M. leucotis was before me. 



Looking further into the matter, it became evident that M. 

 leucotis was identical with the bird long afterwards described 

 by Bonaparte as Vireolanius icterophrys ; and thus a change 

 in the recognized synonymy of this species becomes necessary. 



In the 'Nomenclator Avium Neotropicalium ' (p. 16) 

 Mr. Sclater and I enumerated the five species of Vireolanius 

 with which we were acquainted, being those recognized by 

 Prof. Baird in his ' Review of American Birds.' Putting 

 aside V. melitophrys, which is very distinct from all the rest 

 in coloration, we have four species of Vireolanius, the pre- 

 vailing colour of which is green. Of these the two more 

 northern species, V. pulchellus and V. eximius, have the sides 

 of the head green, and a blue tinge on the feathers of the top 

 of the head. The latter is readily distinguishable from the 

 former by its yellow superciliary stripe. The two more 

 southern species, V. leucotis and V. chlorog aster, have the 

 sides and top of the head grey. Besides a common yellow 

 superciliary line, V. leucotis has a white streak on either 

 cheek, which, running from under the eye, includes the lower 

 portion of the ear-coverts. The lower surface of the body 

 in V. leucotis is of a much clearer yellow than in V. chlo- 

 rogaster. 



