552 Recently published Ornithological Works. [Ibis, 



Part XV. is occupied with the Alcae, the Alectorides (witli 

 families Otidse, Gruidae, and Rallidpe), the Hemipodii 

 or Turnices, and the Galli. This leaves only the rest o£ 

 the Galli and the Ostrich to finish, but we understand a 

 formidable supplement and indexes are to follow to com- 

 plete the work and bring it up to date. 



We have found a few points which appear to require 

 comment. The t\^pe oi Podiceps is stated to be P.fluviatilis. 

 This must surely be a slip of the pen for P. cristatus ; 

 moreover, the Little Grebe is called P. ruficoUis in the main 

 text and not P.fluviatilis. We note also that the genus Morus 

 is admitted for the Solan Goose. Although the generic name 

 of the Cranes is rightly given as Megalornis, the family 

 itself is named Gruidse ; surely according to nomenclatural 

 rules the family name should be taken from the earliest- 

 described genus within its limits. Anyhow, as Gj'us has 

 been shown to be a synonym of Psophia, it seems illogical 

 to use the term Gruidfe as a family name. 



It will be, perhaps, useful to mention the new forms 

 described in the three parts now under notice. They are 

 as follows : — Podiceps ruficoUis japonicus, p. 1455 ; (Enopo- 

 pelia tranqueharica murmensis from the Himalayas, p. 1499; 

 Cursorius gallicus exul from the Cape Verde Islands, 

 p. 1526 ; Sterna maxima alhididorsalis from west African 

 coasts, p. 1698 ; GaUinula chluropus seychellarum, p. 1843; 

 and Lag opus mutus pyrenaicus, p. 1869. 



With regard to the Seychelle Moorhen, a race from the 

 island of St. Denys to the north of the main group of 

 the Seychelles appears to have been named by the late 

 Prof. Newton (Diet. Bds. p. 590, footnote) GaUinula 

 dionysiana, though the description is not very adequate 

 and the diagnostic character relied on is the extreme 

 reduction of the size of the wings. This does not appear 

 to be the case with the bird described by Dr. Hartert, but 

 comparison of the two forms would be of interest. 



