160 Annals of the Carnegie Museum. 



In 1880, the eminent ornithologist, Dr. Sclater, published a classi- 

 fication of Birds in The Ibis, and in it we find the " Herodiones " 

 (Order VII), containing the three families, Ardeidce, Ciconiidce and 

 Plataleida, and standing between the orders Steganopodes and Odonto- 

 glossae. This is the prevailing opinion, and is very probably close to 

 the truth, though some would be inclined, as Professor Newton, to 

 bring them nearer to the Accipitres than to the Steganopodes, on ac- 

 count of the Storks, as they may be, perhaps, considered the point of 

 departure from the Herodiones for the Accipitres.' 



Dr. Reichenow in 1882 in his "Die Vogel der Zoologischen Garten," 

 arranged these families in the following manner : 



Order VII. GRESSORES. 



Family 26. Ibidce. 



27. Ciconid?e. 



28. Phoenicopteridoe. 



29. Scopida;. 



30. Balfenicipidae. 



31. Ardeidse. 



And they were by him placed between the Cursores and 

 Gyrantes, or in his serial arrangement of families, directly between 

 the Pteroclidce (family 25) and the Didida; (family 32). This view 

 is quite unique, and probably quite as unnatural. 



Doctor Coues in his " Key" places the Herodiones as an order, 

 between the Orders Limicol^e and Alectorides — the last containing 

 the Cranes, Rails and their Allies. The Herodiones he divides into 

 the four families IbididcB, Platalcidce (of a suborder Ibides), Ciconii- 

 dce (of a suborder Pelargi), and the Ardeidcp (of a suborder Herodii). 

 This essentially agrees in some respects with what we find in "The 

 A. O. U. Code and Check List of N. A. Birds," which classifies this 

 group as follows : 



Orders. Suborders. Families. 



Odontogloss.-e . Phcenicopteridffi. 



f Ti -J f Plataleidie. 



Ibides ...... 



Herodiones. 



\ Ibididfe. 



Ciconi;e Ciconiidce. 



[ Herodii . . . Ardeidae. 



Paludicol.^. (With its divisions.) 



Stejneger places the "Herodii" (Order IX) between the Cheno- 

 morphce (Order VIII) and the Steganopodes (Order X), and divides 

 them thus : 



1 Newton. Encyclo. Brit., 9th ed., VoL XVIII, Art. "Ornithology," p. 47. 



