REPORT <)N THE DEPARTMENT OE BIOLOGY. 75 



The alcoholics and rough skeletons belonging in the Division of 

 Comparative Anatomy, which are necessarily kepi in one of the 

 annexes at present, were rearranged and put in order during the 

 year, and 1,100 skulls of mammals, many of them of large size, were 

 cleaned and added to the reserve scries. 



SCIENTIFIC RESEARCHES AND PUBLICATIONS. 



The activity of the scientific staff in research was one of the most 

 prominent and gratifying features of the year's work, and the large 

 amount of important results published is shown by the Bibliography 



(Appendix IV). 



The systematic manual of the birds of North and Middle America, by 

 Mr. Robert Ridgway, of which mention was made in last year's report, 

 progressed favorably in spite of serious interruptions, and the first 

 volume was put in type. The second volume is nearly ready for the 

 printer. It is expected that the work will be complete in seven vol- 

 umes. After careful consideration of all the circumstances in the 

 case, it was decided to recast the measurements of specimens, which 

 had been prepared for the tirst volume in English inches, into metric 

 measurements, and this system will be followed throughout the work. 

 Mr. Ridgway also prepared a paper on a new species and genera of 

 tariagers and orioles. 



Dr. Charles W. Richmond continued work on a card catalogue of 

 genera and species of fossil and recent birds, and also published three 

 papers relating to the nomenclature of birds. The work of complet- 

 ing Bendire's ''Life Histories of North American Birds" (Special 

 Bulletins. LT. S. National Museum, Nos. 1 and 3) was taken up by 

 Dr. W. L. Ralph, honorary curator of the Section of Birds' Eggs, and 

 in that connection a circular letter was issued to those interested in 

 collecting information. A gratifying number of responses has been 

 received from correspondents and friends of the Institution. 



Mr. (r. S. Miller, jr., published twenty papers on mammals during 

 the year, chiefly noticing new forms in the East Indian collections of 

 Dr. W. L. Abbott, new European. African, and South American 

 mammals. Included among them, however, were a revision of the 

 Red-backed mice of Europe and a key to the land mammals of eastern 

 North America. Mr. M. W. Lyon, jr., published a study of the oste- 

 ology of the jerboas and jumping mice. 



Papers on the reptiles of Japan and of Porto Rico were nearly com- 

 pleted by Dr. L. Stejneger during the year. A large series of out- 

 line illustrations for the former was prepared. Dr. Stejneger also 

 began a study of the reptiles of Cuba, and illustrations for ;i paper on 

 that subject were prepared. In addition he reported on the reptiles 

 collected by Messrs. Robinson and Lyon in Venezuela and published 

 two papers on the birds known as Wheatears (genus Saxicola). 



