262 MR. P. L. SCLATER ON SOME NEW OR 



names are not to be employed in a binominal system of nomenclature. Nor is it proper 

 to adopt Illiger's MS. term " longipes," as proposed in Prince Bonaparte's ' Conspectus,' 

 while there are many other names for this bird already published. So the earliest specific 

 name available seems to be Shaw's zonurus {Falco zonurus , Shaw's Zool. vii. p. 62), and 

 this species should stand as Urubitinga zonura. It appears to have an extensive range, 

 extending from Paraguay, all over Bolivia, Peru, Brazil, Guiana and New Granada into 

 Southern Mexico, where specimens were obtained by M. Salle (see Proc. Zool. Soc. 1857, 

 p. 227). 



The second allied species of Urubitinga is the " Falco anthracinus, Licht. in Mus. 

 Berol.," under which name it is described by Nitzsch in a note to his ' Pterylographie ' 

 (p. 83). This is the same as Du Bus's Morphnus mexicanus (Bull. Ac. Brux. 1847). See 

 M. de Lafresnaye's observations in the ' Revue Zoologique ' for 1848 (p. 240), where he 

 clearly points out the differences between this bird and the Urubitinga zonura. The 

 Urubitinga anthracina inhabits the northern portion of South America, Guiana' and 

 New Granada^, Guatemala and Southern Mexico^, where MM. Botteri and Salle both 

 procured it, and M. DuBus's types were collected. The third species is Urubitinga 

 schistacea as characterized above, which is distinguishable at once from the preceding 

 by its inferior size and narrower tail-band. The following diagnoses are sufficient to 

 point out the differences between these three species'*: — 



1. U. zonura. Major, cuudce dimidio basali et margins apicali albis. 



2. U. anthracina. Media, cauda fascia lata et margine apicali albis. 



3. U. schistacea. Minor, caudcs fascia angusta et margine apicali albis. 



Such are these birds in their adult plumage : in their immaturity they are quite 

 diflferent. I have not yet seen the young of U. schistacea, as I now think the specimen in 

 one of Sally's Mexican collections called Morphnus schistaceus,]\xv. (Proc. Zool. Soc. 1857, 

 p. 227), does not really belong here ; but the other two species in their immature state 

 are both irregularly flammulated on the lower surface and back, and have numerous 

 huffy-white cross-bars on the tail and under tail-coverts. Specimens of U. zonura in 

 this state are in the British Museum, and we have a fine example of a similar bird now 

 alive in our Gardens. 



I have hitherto used for these birds the generic term Morphnus, following Mr. Gray 

 and other writers ; but on considering that the true type of Morphnus is the Falco 

 guianensis of Daudin — a bird of different structure, and more nearly allied to Thrasaetus, 

 I think they stand better disconnected. But the Falco unicinctus of Temminck and 

 Falco meridionalis of Latham — two allied species, for which Kaup's term Spizigeranus 



' Schomburgk, Reisen in Britisch Guiana, iii. p. 740. 

 ' MM. Verreaux have received examples from Santa Martlia. 

 5 See Proc. Zool. Soc. 1857, pp. 211 & 227. 



■• A fourth black Urubitinga from Cuba, allied to JJ. anthracina, has lately been described bv Cabauis under 

 the name Hypomorphnus Gundlachii. See Cab. Journ. f. Orn. 1854, Erinnerungs-heft, p.lxxx. 



