28 The Wilson Bulletin — No. 86 



and all of the more important species are given. The paper 

 on which it is printed is good and the binding, as in all 

 European works, perfect, in great contrast to the majority 

 of American works, with their absolutely miserable binding. 

 The type is clear and errors are not to be found, no index of 

 errata being necessary. 



The general notes occupy 66 pages, with an extra page of 

 references to works on systematic ornithology and current 

 literature, among which the Auk and Condor of American 

 journals are mentioned. This chapter contains information 

 on the skeleton, muscles, brain, senses, digestive apparatus, 

 respiratory and vocal organs, vascular system, genital organs, 

 eggs, time of incubation, feathers, colors, moult, uropygial 

 glands, bill, feet, caruncles and phosphorescent tracts, flight, 

 ability to swim, voice, mating, nesting, care for young, nutri- 

 tion, propagation of plants by birds, intellectual qualities, 

 bastardy, mimicry, age, numbers of species, faunas and geo- 

 graphical distribution, migration, height of same, velocity of 

 flight, origin, genealogy, system of classification, nomencla- 

 ture, abbreviation of authors' names, terminology given in 

 German, Latin, English, French and Italian, and instruction 

 as to measurements. 



In spite of its brevity this chapter contains for instance 

 splendid explanations of terms as dromaeognathous, desmog- 

 nathous, schizognathous, aegithognathous, schizorhine, holo- 

 rhine, diastataxism and eutaxism, so that in short terms we 

 have here that for which otherwise an extensive library is 

 needed. Feather change without moult or aptosochromatism 

 is disposed of with the statement that a feather once com- 

 pleted is apparently no longer in any connection with the 

 circulation of the blood. However, such a change without 

 moult seems to take place in the appearance of the salmon 

 color on the lower side of Mergus merganser and americanus, 

 and on the head, back and lower neck of Bubulcus ibis in the 

 spring. 



Special attention is paid to the forms of feet found in 

 birds, and later in the explanation of the system of classifica- 

 tion this becomes of the utmost importance. 



