Recently published Ornithological Works. 747 



turned all the trinomial names into binomials. Dr. Hartert, 

 on the other hand, is strongly in favour of trinomials, and 

 employs them, as we are disposed to think, rather too freely. 

 Of the 12-10 forms comprised in the first volume of his 

 ' Palaearctic Birds/ by far the greater number have a third 

 name. In fact, he often degrades to the rank of " sub- 

 species " many easily distinguishable forms which other 

 writers have treated as full species. 



Another point on which we cannot at all agree with 

 Dr. Hartert is the duplication of the specific name in the 

 case of such subspecies as are the typical forms of the 

 species. It would be much simpler and more elegant, we 

 think, to designate the typical form by the addition of the 

 word " typicus " to the generic and specific names. Thus 

 we should write " Corvus corax typicus" not " Corvus corax 

 corax " When, as is the case with those who use " touto- 

 nyrns " (i. e., the same name for the genus and species), the 

 one name is repeated three times over (e. g., Pica pica pica, 

 Coccothraustes coccothraustes coccothraustes) , the effect is 

 almost ludicrous ! 



A third point in nomenclature upon which we cannot 

 follow Dr. Hartert is his alteration of many of our most 

 familiar scientific names on what we should be inclined to 

 consider insufficient evidence. For example, the Grey Fly- 

 catcher is called Muscicapa striata instead of Muscicapa 

 grisola,t\\e genus te Accentor" is changed to "Prunella," 

 and Turdus musicus is dethroned in favour of Turdus 

 philomelus ! It would be easy to shew in these and other 

 similar cases that such changes might have been avoided by 

 a little judicious management. And consider the number 

 of text-books and books of reference that have employed 

 these rejected terms for the last hundred years, and are 

 now required to change them on grounds that are appre- 

 ciable only to the few students of zoological nomenclature. 



The subspecies provided with new names in the sixth 

 part of vol. i. of this work are : — 



SER. ix. — vol. iv. 3d 



