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JOURNAL OF THK WILD BIRD IWKSTIG \T10X SOCIETY, 



R E V I E W5 



Tekritokv in BiKi) Li IB. Bv H. Eliot Howard. 

 Pp. xiii. + 308, I I pis. London : John 

 MurraA', 1920. Price 21s. net. 



The author puts forward a thesis of distinct 

 value and orig-inality, which is well written and 

 illustrated by a considerable amount of personal 

 observations. 



Briefly, his contention is " that each male 

 isolates itself at the commencement of the breed- 

 ing; season and exercises dominion over a re- 

 stricted area of ground. With a view to ascer- 

 taining- the relation of this behaviour to the 

 system of reproduction, Mr. Howard made further 

 careful studies of widely different species. The 

 result of his investigations is given in this book, 

 which fully discusses the theory of ' breeding- 

 territory," and attempts to interpret the prospec- 

 tive value of the behaviour. A number of facts 

 are given which serve to show that the battles, 

 so marked a feature of bird life in the spring, are 

 directlv related to the possession of territory, and 

 that the song contributes towards the security of 

 possession. The problem of migration is also 

 discussed, and its orig-in traced to the seasonal 

 competition for territory." 



Interesting as Mr. Howard's theory is, we feel 

 that at times he is unconvincing, there is a certain 

 sense of strain, and he views almost every action 

 through " territon- spectacles," forgetting- that 

 there are other equally sound explanations. 

 Nevertheless this book is full of interest and can- 

 not fail to command attention. 



Birds of La Pi..at.\. By \\\ H. Hudson. \'ol. 1, 

 pp. xvii + 244, 12 pis.; vol. ii, pp. ix. -I- 

 240, 1 1 pJs. London : J. M. Dent & Sons, 

 Ltd. [1920]. Price £1 17s. 6d. net. 



The many students of bird-life who possess Mr. 

 Hudson's other works will welcome these two 

 beautifullv printed and illustrated volumes. The 

 matter contained therein is taken from an 

 earlier work, Argentine Oniitliologv. published in 

 1888-9. 



The majority of species mentioned are known 

 to most British ornithologists by their names 

 only, it is therefore interesting to learn something- 

 of their habits and the comparisons with our own 

 species. Mr. Hudson gives a long and excel- 

 lent account of the parasitical Cow-bird, discuss- 



ing-, with man\ original observations, the mis- 

 takes and imperfections of the procreant instinct 

 of the species, the advantages it possesses over 

 its ikipes, the diversity in the colour of the eggs, 

 the habits of the young, and conjectures as to the 

 origin of the parasitic instinct. In a like manner 

 he gives us a wealth of information about the 

 various species of Tyrant birds, the Oven-birds, 

 a singing Kingfisher, the Burrowing-Owl, the 

 Common Carrion Hawk, various Herons, Ducks, 

 Rails, Plovers, Tinamu's, etc. 



Whoever, like the author, loves living birds, 

 and is interested in their ways and habits, will 

 find in these two volumes material of more than 

 passing interest, for apart from the originality 

 of the text it is written as only Mr. Hudson can 

 write on the realm of bird-life. 



The illustrations by Mr. H. Cronvold are beau- 

 tiful, indeed these are two very charming volumes 

 whiiii \\-ill well repav perusal. 



DisEASKS oi' Domesticated Birds. By .\. R. 

 Ward and B. .A. Gallagher. I'p. xii + 333, 

 69 figs. New York : The .Macnilllan Coni- 

 pany, 1920. Price 21s. 

 To all who desire an authoritative work on the 

 diseases of domesticated birds — poultry, geese 

 and ducks, turkevs, pigeons, cag-e-birds and 

 ostriches — we can thoroughly recommend this 

 excellent treatise, for apart from the high qualifi- 

 cations and long experience of its authors, which 

 lead us to expect much, it is written in such a 

 style that all who have to do with domesticated 

 birds can turn to it and find a masterly and thor- 

 oughlv practical treatment of the various diseases 

 to which they are liable. 



Most works of this nature are overburdened 

 with technical terms and illustrations, the latter 

 of verv little value to the reader. These two 

 features are, we are pleased to note, absent in 

 the present instance. The descriptive matter, 

 given under the headings — characterization, eti- 

 ology, pathogenicity, mortality, symptoms, mor- 

 bid anatomy, course of disease, diagnosis, treat- 

 ment and prevention — is terse yet lucid, practical, 

 and up-to-date. Not the least valuable feature 

 of this work is the excellent and useful series of 

 references, after the account of each disease, 

 parasite, etc., including, as thev do, upwards of 

 three hundred titles. 



The chapter treating of the infections diseases 

 of canarv birds will applv to cage-birds generally, 

 riiere is a most interesting chapter on toxicology 

 and a good index. 



Manv of the diseases of domesticated birds can 



