Ornithology of Central America, 3 



Jardiue's ' Contributions to Ornithology*.' Mr. Joseph Leyland 

 of Liverpool has also recently visited the Bay of Honduras for 

 the purpose of collecting objects of natural history. Mr. 

 Thomas Moore, of the Derby Museum, has drawn up an account 

 of the Mammals and Birds collected by Mr. Leyland, and has 

 kindly allowed us the use of his MS., which we hope to see 

 published shortly. Our southern limit, the line of the proposed 

 railway through Honduras, was traversed in 1858 by Capt. G. C. 

 Taylor. A list of the birds obtained by him will be found in 

 the Proceedings of the Zoological Society f for the same year, 

 and is our only authority upon the birds of this district. Far- 

 ther southwards, the ornithology of Nicaragua has been partly 

 explored by DelattreJ and Salle §, and that of Veragua by 

 Mr. Bridges ||, M. Warscewicz^, and the surveying expedition 

 under the command of Capt. Kellett. The specimens obtained 

 from the latter source are now in the British Museum. We 

 believe we have now mentioned nearly, if not quite, all the 

 authorities on Central American ornithology **. Of such of 

 these as relate to the territory within our limits we have of 

 course availed ourselves. But we have derived most assist- 

 ance from the series of bird-skins which have been lately trans- 

 mitted by George lire Skinner, Esq., from Guatemala. This 

 gentleman, well known for the splendid Orchids ff which he has 



* See Contr. Orn. pi. 17, pi. 33, &c. Some of the duplicates from these 

 collections passed into my possession. — P. L. S. 



t See P. Z. S. 1858, p. 356. 



X See " Note sur les collections rapportees en 1853 par M. A. Delattre 

 de son voyage en Californie et dans le Nicaragua par Charles Lucien, 

 Prince Bonaparte," Compt. Rend, xxxvii. and xxxviii., and also sejjarately 

 printed. 



§ The two beautiful Mammals figured in P. Z. S. 1848, pi. vi. and vii., 

 Mycetes palliatus, Gray, and Sciurus dorsalis, Gray, were obtained by 

 M. Salle during this journey near Grenada in Nicaragua, and not at 

 Caraccas, as there stated. 



11 See P. Z. S. 1856, p. 138. 



^ SeeP.Z. S. 1850, p. 162. 



** Whether Dr. Wagner and Dr. Scherzer, who have recently travelled 

 through the Central American republics, collected any birds, we do not 

 know, but we believe they have not yet published anything on the subject. 



tt Cattleyia skinneri, Barkeria skinneri, Lycaste skinneri, Odonto- 

 glossum grande, and many other magnificent species. 



B 2 



