558 Recently published Ornithological Works. 



77. Snouckaert van Schauburg's ' Avifauna Neerlandica.^ 



[A-vifauna Neerlandica — Lijst der tot dusverre in Nederland in wilden 

 staat waarg-enomen Vogelsoorten, door Mr. Dr. R. C. E. G. J. Baron 

 Snouckaert van Schaubiirg, Voorzitter der Nederlandsche Omithologische 

 Vereeuiging. Met 12 Illustratien, door den Heer T. Csorgey. 1 Tol. 

 Leeuwarden,Melier & Schaapsma. 1908.] 



In our last number (above, p. 379) we gave a notice of 

 Dr. Van Oort\s memoir on the Birds of the Netherlands, and 

 stated that a copy of another work on the same subject, 

 prepared by Baron Snouckaert van Schauburg, had also 

 been received. This last-mentioned volume is now before 

 us, and we have great pleasure in introducing it to British 

 ornithologists, who will find it very useful in tracing out 

 the range of British species. 



The author writes in his native language, whicli is obviously 

 pi'oper in his case, but Dutch is so closely allied to Englisli 

 that there will be little diflSculty in understanding it, espe- 

 cially for those who have some acquaintance with German. 

 He begins, we are glad to say, with the highest birds, not 

 with the lowest, and enumerates 332 species to be included 

 in the ' Avifauna Neerlandica.' No descriptions are given 

 of the species, but sufficient references to other works in 

 which descriptions can be found are added, and the exact 

 mode of the occurrence of every species and its frequency or 

 scarceness are concisely stated. In his nomenclature Baron 

 Snouckaert is still more of a trinomialist than Dr. Van Oort, 

 nearly every species being provided with three names. He 

 has likewise fallen into the bad habit of altering some of 

 Linnaius's best-known specific terms — for example, calling 

 Muscicapa grisola " Muscicapa striata." In our opinion, 

 Linnaeus's terms ought to be held sacred for all generations, 

 especially when, as in the case alluded to, the authorship of 

 the w^ork from which the novel term is taken is by no means 

 certain. 



Twelve nicely drawn coloured plates ornament the present 

 work. We should mention that Turdus cohurni Sharpe 

 (Bull. B. O. C. xii. p. 28, 1901) is included in the present 

 work on the faith of a specimen obtained in Holland on 



