■478 Recently published Oniithologlciil Works. ^ 



The systematic arrangement adopted by Mr. Sharpe appears 

 to be a combination of those of Prof. Garrod^ Prof. Sundevall, 

 and Mr. Wallace. The birds treated of in the present volume 

 are the " Coliomorphse '^ — a term applied here to the families 

 Corvidse, Paradiseidse, Oriolidge, Dicruridse, and Prionopidse. 

 This, it may be remarked, is a very different series from Prof. 

 SundevalFs " Coliomorphse/^ which embraces the Icteridie, 

 Sturnidse, Corvidse^ and Paradiseidae of most authors^ with 

 some minor groups. The Prionopidse of Mr. Sharpe we cannot 

 regard as a very natural family, embracing, as it does, such 

 diverse-looking forms as Grallina, Eurocephalus, Hypocolius, 

 and Euryceros ! But much must depend on whether jNIr. 

 Sharpens new character of the production forwards of the 

 " chin-angle," whereby he separates the ColiomorpliBe from 

 the remaining " Turdiformes," will stand the test of length- 

 ened examination. 



As regards the nomenclature employed by Mr. Sharpe, we 

 may observe that the Stricklandian code now adopted by 

 most English naturalists is not obeyed in several particulars. 

 It is enacted thereby that " specific names, when adopted as 

 generic, must be changed." But Mr. Sharpe maintains Corone 

 corone and Pyrrhocorax pyrrhocorax directly in the teeth of 

 this wholsome regulation. It is also enacted that " a name 

 glaringly false may be changed." Yet Mr. Sharpe rejects 

 appropriate names in order to call an Oriole of the Philip- 

 pines chinensis, and a Bolivian Crow chilensis — the evidence 

 of identification in both these cases being, to say the least of 

 it, very doubtful. 



We rejoice to see that in the present volume Mr. Sharpe 

 has somewhat curtailed the length of his descriptions. Short 

 Latin diagnoses would, we think, have been much better in 

 a work of this kind, with a few observations added to show 

 the relation of the species to its nearest allies. The ''keys 

 to the species," given under each genus, are very useful in their 

 way, but break down when you come to use them for the 

 determination of specimens, from only one point of difference 

 between allied species being given. 



The total number of species recognized by Mr. Sharpe as 



