A 6 STEJNEGER, A?ialccta Ornithologica. [January 



XIX. Is the Name Ortyx masse?ia tenable ? 



In the synonymies of the species known as the 'Massena 

 Quail' the earliest name is quoted as '•'•Ortyx massena Less., 

 Cent. Zool., 1830, 1S9," this name taking the ' preference over 

 "Ortyx montezumce Vig., Zool. Jonrn. V, 1830, 275." 



In turning to Lesson's work, quoted above, we find first that 

 Ortyx massena is a mere nomen nudum. The following is all 

 that is said about it: "Ce colin \_0. elegans Less.] provient de 

 la Californie, ainsi qu'une autre belle et nouvelle espece, que nous 

 avons nommfe ortyx Massena, et qui se trouve dans la collection 

 de M. le due de Rivoli. Les ortyx elegans et Massena sont tres- 

 distincts des ortyx picta et ortyx Donglasii, decrits dans le tome 

 16 (pag. 243) des Transactions de la societe Linneenne de 

 Londres." The name does not occur in the same author's 

 'Traite' published in 1831. 



But, even apart from the unavailability of Lesson's name 

 because unaccompanied by a diagnosis, description, or figure, 

 there seems to be little doubt that Ortyx monteztimce has the 

 priority. The title-page of Lesson's 'Centurie Zoologique' 

 certainly bears the date 1830, and the dedication to M. Geoffroy- 

 Saint-Hilaire is dated, u Janvier 1830." The work seems to have 

 been issued in parts, the title-page and the dedication having been 

 annexed to the first part, which may have been published in 1S30, 

 for the title on the paper-cover has the year 1832, and the 'Post- 

 Scriptum' on p. 229 is written in "Fevrier 1831." The article 

 from which the above quotation is taken pretends to be written 

 in June 1830, according to a remark at the bottom of the page, 

 but on the same signature and four pages earlier is an article 

 written in November of the same year, so that it is safe to pre- 

 sume that the part containing the name ortyx Massena was not 

 printed and published before 183 1. 



Therefore, the Massena Quail, or, perhaps better, the Massena 

 Colin, should stand as 



485. Cyrtonyx montezumse ( Vig.). 



XX. Cyanolesbia, 'strictly correct' ! 



The Trochiline genus Cynanthus, as at present accepted by 

 'plurimis auctoribus,' offers a curious transposition of types, not 



