958 THICK-KNEE— THRASHER 



other genera as Falcunculus (Shrike), Orececa and Eopsaltria seem to 

 be nearly allied (c/. Gadow, Cat B. Br. Mus. viii. pp. 172-227). By 

 many systematists they are placed among the Laniidse ; but they seem 

 to differ much in habit from the Shrikes, of an older and more 

 generalized form of which they may be survivors, and they certainly 

 deserve grouping as a subfamily at least. No fewer than 12 species 

 of Pacliycephala and 4 of Eopsaltria occur in one part or another of 

 Australia ; but the latter are said by Gould {Hand-h. B. Austral, i. 

 p. 292) to be "very nearly related" to the genus Fetroeca (Wheatear), 

 while the former are described by him (torn. cit. p. 206) as differing 

 in habit from most other insectivorous birds, "particularly in their 

 quiet mode of hopping about and traversing the branches of trees 

 in search of larvae," caterpillars forming a large part of their food. 



The name Thickhead is, however, given in other parts of the 

 world to very different birds, and in South Africa especially to 

 CEdicnemus capensis (Dikkop, p. 148), the Stone-CuRLEW of that 

 country^ and if not complimentary, it is at least not inaccurate, as is 



THICK-KNEE, absurdly applied to our own bird by Leach in 

 1816 {Syst. Cat. Mamm. & B. Br. Mus. p. 28), being an abbrevia- 

 tion of Pennant's still more misleading "Thick-kneed Bustard" 

 conferred by him in 1776 {Brit. Zool. ed. 4, i. p. 244). 



THISTLE-BIRD, -FINCH and -WARP, names of the Gold- 

 finch (p. 370), -COCK in Orkney for the Great Bunting (p. 60). 



THRASHER, THRESHER, or THRUSHER,i names given to a 

 bird well known in the eastern part of North America, the Turdus 

 fuscus of the older and Harporhynchus fuscus of later ornithologists, 

 some of whom have dissociated it altogether from the Thrushes, to 

 which it was long held to belong, placing it with Mimus (Mocking- 

 bird, pp. 582-585) among the ''■ Troglodytinse" (Wren), and those 

 among the " Timeliidse," whichis an admission of taxonomic inability. 

 Valid reasons there may be for separating Harporhynchus, of which 

 there are several species in North America, from the Turdidse, and 

 the osteological grounds are temperately advanced by Mr. Lucas 

 {Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus. xi. pp. 173-180); but little value can be 

 attached to what had previously been urged as the strongest point, 

 namely, that in Turdus, and its nearest allies, the tarsus is covered 

 anteriorly with a continuous plate, Avhile in the Mwrns-grow^ the tarsus 

 is anteriorly scutellated, generally with 7 scales ; for Baird {Rev. 

 Am. B. p. 3) shewed that this might be an individual peculiarity, 



1 These words are doubtless derived from Thrush, if they be not corrup- 

 tions of it. An esteemed American correspondent has suggested to me that 

 Thrusher originated in the wish to indicate that the bird so called was bigger 

 than an ordinary Thrush, of which word it might be said to be (if the expression 

 be allowable) the "comparative degree." In that case the other two must be 

 regarded as corruptions. They have nothing to do with threshing. 



