344 Letters, Extracts, and Notes. [Ibis, 



Irish Naturalist. (Vol. xxx. nos. 1-.3.) 



Journal of the Bombay Nat. Ilist. Soc. (Vol. xxvii. no. 2.) 



Journal of the Federated Malay States Museum. (Vol. x. no. 2.) 



Journal of the Natural History Society of Siam. (Vol. iii. no. 5.) 



Journal fiir Ornithologie. (Vol. 69, no. 1.) 



Oolofj:ists' Record. (Vol. i. no. 1.) 



Ornithologische Monatsberichte. (Vol. 29, nos. 1/2, 3/4.) 



Revue Fran9ai3e d'Ornithologie. (Nos. 140-143.) 



Revue d'Histoire naturelle appliquee. L'Oiseau. (Vol. i. no. 12 ; vol. ii. 



nos. 1,2.) 

 Scottish Naturalist. (1921, nos. 109, 110.) 

 South African Journal of Natural Plistory. (Vol. ii. no. 2.) 

 South Australian Ornithologist. (Vol. v. no. 4.) 

 Tori. (Vol. ii. no. 10.) 

 Verhandl. Orn. Ges. Bayern. (V''ol. xiv. pt. 4.) 



XX. — Letters, Extracts, and Notes. 



The Last Phase of the Subspecies. 



Sir, — The interestiug letter from Mr. Loomis ia the 

 October number of ' The Ibis ' will be welcomed by many 

 ornithologists on this side of the Atlantic, and not least 

 by some of those who might be termed " subspecies" men. 



It seems to us that up to the present the excuse — in fact, 

 the necessity — for trinomialism lies in the fact that binomial 

 names, and consequent recognition of complete specific 

 distinction, had been conferred on many mere geographical 

 variations. The trinomialist then arrived on the scene, and 

 did much good by reducing such geographical forms to their 

 true position as races, or mere climatic variations, of one 

 species. He also named and continues to name other races, 

 which he considers as distinct as those which have names 

 already. 



Now, even those who oppose all trinomialism will agree 

 tliat, as the species is the only definite minor unit in nature, 

 any system which enables us at a glance to appreciate 

 properly the true specific relationship of a form whose rank 

 as a distinct species had previously been misconceived, would 



