114 Rece7U Literature. \j^. 



rachis, others in which the stripe is much broader, perhaps with a ten- 

 dency to break into bars, then others distinctly barred, with still other 

 stages between these and wholly colored feathers. It is rare of course to 

 find such a variety of intergrading patterns in a single bird, but a strong 

 approach to such a condition is by no means rare. So long as these differ- 

 ent patterns cannot be demonstrated to be successional stages hi the same 

 feather^ it seems idle to consider them in any strict sense evolutional 

 stages, or to refer to them as illustrating the evolution of color pattern, 

 evolution implying the evolving of one thing by direct outgrowth frorn 

 another ; and in like manner the term ' self-coloured ' in such a connection 

 is clearly inadmissible and misleading. In other words the implied gen- 

 etic connection does not exist ; the relation is simply incidental. 



Feathers are classified as striped, barred, etc., in accordance with their 

 pattern of marking, and the markings themselves are indicated by a 

 variety of descriptive terms ; and, as almost every conceivable style is 

 represented, there is necessarily a gradation of one form into another, so 

 that all may be considered arbitrarily or theoretically as modifications of 

 the simplest type of all, the longitudinally streaked feather, which seems 

 to be the main conclusion of Mr. Bonhote's paper. 



That evolution has played a prominent part in the development of the 

 different styles of coloration that characterize particular groups of birds 

 is beyond question, adapting them to their varied environments and differ- 

 ent modes of life, but we do not see how Mr. Bonhote's paper bears es- 

 pecially upon this phase of the question ;» nor, in fact does he appear to 

 claim that it has such bearing. — J. A. A. 



Publications Received. — Barlow, Chester. A List of the Land Birds 

 of Placerville-Lake Tahoe Stage Road, Central Sierra Nevada Mountains, 

 Cal. (Condor, III, No. 6, 1901.) 



Bonhote, J. L. On the Evolution of Pattern in Feathers. (P. Z. S., 

 1901, pp. 316-326, pU. xix, XX.) 



Bryan, William Alanson. Key to the Birds of the Hawaiian Group. 

 (Mem. Bishop Museum, I, pp. 259-332, pll. xvi-xxx.) 



Buturlin, S. A. Wild Geese of the Russian Empire, with descriptions 

 of new Forms. (Separate, pp. 48, in Russian.) 



Dresser, H. E. On some rare or unfigured Paltearctic Birds' Eggs. 

 (Ibis, July, 1901, pp. 445-449> pl- ix.) 



Embody, George Charles, Birds of Madison County, New York. 

 (Bull. Dept. Geol. and Nat. Hist., Colgate University. 8vo, pp. 36, Hamil- 

 ton, N. Y., 1901.) 



Finch, O. Zur Catalogisirung der ornithologischen Abtheilung. No. 

 VI, Meropodidse. (Notes Leyden Museum, XXIII, pp. 1-14.) No. VII 

 Muscicapidse. (Ibid., pp. 33-52.) 



Helm, F. (i) Betrachtungen iiber die Beweise Gatkes fiir die Hohe des 

 Wanderfluges der Vogel. (Journ. f. Orn., Oct. 1900.) (2) Weitere Betrach 



