132 PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY OP 



when they'are transversely rayed with dusky and rufous, — paler on the ab- 

 domen, and have the bases of the quills and rectrices white. The only point is 

 to determine of what species it is the young. Regarding its size, Brdnnich 

 compares it with his Catharacta skua, saying, that it is much smaller than 

 that species, and " Magnitudo/jarastVicoe." The young of the year of poma- 

 rinus is more nearly of the size of an adult of parasitica, than is the young 

 of the year of the long-tailed species. The description of the colors, form, 

 &c., which follows, agrees precisely with those of the jouing pomarinus ; and 

 when we remember that at that date the differences between the common 

 and lo-ng- tailed Jagers were not recognized, the two species being confounded 

 together by authors generally, (except Brisson ;) it does not appear by any 

 means certain that Briinnich had the long-tailed species in view in drawing 

 up the description of '^ cepphus." Had that been the case, he would pro- 

 bably have compared it with parasitica rather than with skua. Moreover, 

 Latham, in his description of his Larus crepidatus, which is the young poma- 

 rinus, gives " cepphus, Briinn." as a synonym of that species. 



Upon the whole, therefore, while I by no means insist upon the reference 

 of the name under consideration to the pomarinus, I merely wish to show 

 that it very possibly belongs to it : and that [the description is too vague 

 and uncertain to justify the use of the name for either of the species. It is 

 for this reason that I have adopted Boie's name ^^ BuffonV for the long-tailed 



_3r. 



Having always professed a rigid adherence to the great law of priority in 

 questions of nomenclature, I am, perhaps, in the present instance, rendering 

 myself liable to be taken to task for not employing the name " crepidatus" 

 of Gmelin and Latham (1788-&0) for this species instead of pomarinus of 

 Temminck, since the former name is in all probability based upon this 

 species. The description is, however, short and unsatisfactory, and is, 

 moreover, based upon the young bird of the year ; and, though there cannot 

 really be much doubt as to the species which these authors had in their 

 minds in preparing their descriptions, still I think in view of the above 

 considerations, that it will hardly be expedient to supersede so definite, long- 

 known and universally employed a name as pomarinus. At the same time, 

 should any one else see fit to do so, I would in future writings unhesitatingly 

 follow his example. 



4. Steecobaeius paeasiticus Gray ex Briinn. 



^Sterna rectricibus duabus internislongissimis, Linn., Fn. Suec, No. 129. 



?Larus rectricibus duabus internis longissimis, Linn., S. N., 1748. 



Catharacta parasitica, Briinnich, Ornith. Borealis, 1764, 37. 



Larus parasiticus, Linnaeus, Syst. Nat., 1766, i. 226. Gmelin, Syst. Nat., 

 1788, i. 601. (Num Lath.? qui me judice potius ad longicaudatum 

 Briss spectat.) 



Cataracta parasitica, Retzius,* Fauna Suecica, 1800, 160. 



Catarractes parasita, Pallas, Zoog. Rosso-Asife, ii. 1811, 310. 



Lestris parasita, Keyserling jet Blasius, Wirbelth. Europ., 1840, i. 240. 

 Schlegel, Rev. Crit. Ois. Eur., 1844, 85. Bonaparte, Cat. Met. Ucc. 

 Europ., 1842, 80. Des Murs, Traite d'Oologie Ornith., 1860, 551. Bona- 

 parte, Rev. Crit. Degland's Orn. Eur., 1850, 202. 



* It JB difficult, perhaps imposeible, to say whether the citations of the authors before 1800 

 really refer to this species, or to the long-tailed Jager. I have, however, placed them under the 

 head of p<ira.si<tca, for this reason: Ketzius in his edition of the Fauna Suecica (of 1800) gives 

 them as synonyms of liis paraxitica, of which his description is, '^ JRectrices b, 6, (i.e., the central 

 pair) caiteris 4 poll. longiorcs;" thus clearly referring to the true parasitica. Descriptions of 

 previous authors had mostly been merely " Rectricibus meUiis Icmgissimis," whence the uncer- 

 tainty. Ketzius, however, is in error in adducing Stercorarius Umgicaudatus, Briss., as a synonym 

 of parasitica. 



[May, 



