104 



THE OOLOOIST. 



Smythes"' of the town of Alba. Gener- 

 ic, 'Smith," specific, "Siuj'tlie," sub- 

 specific, "de Smythe." 



Let us go back to the birds: No scien- 

 tific name was more beautiful — despite 

 its cumbersomeness, which latter ac- 

 count, perhaps, for the labored flight of 

 the bird, than that of the Black Tern, 

 which name originated, I think, with 

 GmtiVm, "IJfjdroc/ielkloii,'" gives us a pi('- 

 turesque, poetical name for the whole 

 genus of '•Sea-Swallows," ''Lnriformi^'' 

 denotes the species that is "gull-sha|ted 

 in structure; "SurinamoiKis" limits thi; 

 sul)-species connected bj it. I fancy, — 

 to the particular h)cality wliei'e it w as 

 fii'st observed. One regrets that the 

 present imi)erions demand for tersene.'^s 

 should have striken out l!ie specific 

 Lurifonnis — which is botli poetical and 

 precise, and substituted for it the phiin 

 prosaic ' nig7vt'" for, does not everybody 



know tliat this Tern is "Black V " 



I take up my A. O. U. chei.-k list and 

 refresh my mind concerning some of 

 the more beautiful "onomato poetic" 

 names, — The Loon, "Urindior imbcr''' 

 tlie "Storm beaten Diver." What finer 

 name for a bird which, Avhen not in air, 

 is always on or under the water! 



Large-billed Puflflin, ''Fratercnla arc- 

 lica gldCAalis,'" what a sociable fellow 

 this "Little Brother" must be in his 

 "ic3^ arctic regions." 



"Crested Aiiklet" "Simor/iync/ms 

 crifttatellus'' — a "snub-nosed" bird with 

 a "little crest." (But how good Dr. C. 

 would haved railed, has he only thought 

 of it, at the hare hitinit^y of ' ' Crisiatdl- 

 us,'' as he ai-tually did at tlie execrable 

 Gnecism of ''C/ionclestes'' (Lark Finch) 

 which he would have told us, had not 

 his book been already big enough, 

 should have been "■Vhondredcstes," or 

 eater of grass seeds.) 



Parasitic Jaeger, " Staroran'us para- 

 stlicus" a "noi.sy flatterer,"the full mean- 

 ing of the graphic name can be known 

 only to those that are so fortunate as to 

 l)e able to study this bird in his haunts. 



Dr. Coues, who gives us a whole page 

 descriptive of the Jaeger's n)anner of 

 dress, would have conferred a favor 

 had he given us a paragrapii on the 

 felhjw's convivial and social habits. 



Least Petrel, "H(il-oku-pte?ia micro 

 somd" a "sea (dwelling) swift-winged, 

 little body" — little, yet big enough to be 

 the only one of the Petrel tribe to re- 

 ceive this Generic name, for the privi- 

 lege of bearing which, who would not 

 be a PetielV 



One thing, will the Doctor tell us 

 about the Great Auk — We knoiv that he 

 was "wingless" — '"fiuj^cnnis," but why 

 was he "plautus? " 



Now, like the Auk, I must lay aside 

 my quill. If the above thoughts have 

 seemed neither pedantic nor obtrusive, 

 perhaps the readers of the Oologist 

 may hear again from 



Beta. 



Pointers on Making Bird Skins. 



The exchange notice 5^ou inserted for 

 me in January OOlogist brought a great 

 many letters and oiTcrs of exchanges^ 

 I have completed tradis with some, and 

 with others, am still negotiating. One 

 trouble I much lament is the poor make- 

 up of skins by most loUectors. 



The fountain head of trouble I be. 

 lieve to be in ihe books and papers 

 giving instructions on collecting. I 

 don't tielieve any man in this age of dis. 

 covery and improvement, can safely 

 claim to have such a perfect knowledge 

 of practical bird skin collecting and 

 taxidermy, that improvetiient in some 

 detail is not ))()ssible. If there is such a 

 person I would like to be informed of 

 the fact. Being honest in tiie aboA'e 

 statements. I don't feel presumptions 

 in attempting to point out av hat I be- 

 lieve to be faults in preparing skins, 

 and will humbly describe as Avell as 

 possible how I believe improvements 

 can be maile, which will render collect- 

 ions of skins far more valuable, instruC' 



