202 Recent Literature. \_\$\ 



-with 17 genera; the Impennes 17 species with 6 genera. All but ten of 

 the species are represented in the British Museum collection. In the 

 Platalea? and Herodiones Mr. Sharpe retains the redundancy of genera 

 which has characterized his recent volumes of the 'Catalogue' and his 

 preliminary papers on these two groups, the average being ih species to 

 the genus in the former and 2-i species to the genus in the latter. On 

 the other hand Mr. Grant is very conservative, the average for the 

 Steganopodes being 11 species to a genus, with 37 in Phalacrocorax, 

 under which genus no subgenera are recognized. 



As regards North American species, there are many departures from 

 the A. O. U. Cheek-List through taking Linna-us's names at 1766 instead 

 of 1758, and ignoring Brisson's genera, and others for other reasons. 

 Eudocimus, though preoccupied by Eudocima, in Lepidoptera, is used in 

 preference to Guara, the first strictly tenable name for the genus. All 

 of the A. O. U. Cheek-List subgenera of Ardea are given the rank of genera, 

 and in addition, a genus Leucopkoyx (Sharpe, 1894) is employed for Ardea 

 candidissima. Without the author having seen specimens of the South 

 American Ardea tricolor it is recognized as specifically distinct from the 

 North American A. tricolor ruficollis. On the other hand, Nycticorax nyc- 

 ticorax nceviiis is referred to N. nycticorax, and no subspecies are admitted 

 in the Bu to rides virescens group. 



Phalacrocorax urile (Gm.) becomes P. bicristatus Pallas, on the ground 

 apparently that urile was originally composite. No subspecies are recog- 

 nized under P. pelagicus, and only one, cinciiialus, under P. dilophus, 

 for the white-crested Pacific coast form, the two eastern forms being- 

 referred to dilophus, which name, however, gives place to auritus Lesson, 

 1S31. While the untenability of dilophus (Vieillot nee Swainson) is 

 evident, it is not quite so manifest that auritus, founded on Vieillot's very 

 unsatisfactory figure of a supposed New Zealand specimen, is the correct 

 substitute; under these circumstances it seems far better to accept Pha- 

 lacrocorax floridanus Aud. (1S35) as the proper name for the group. 

 P. mexicanus is made a subspecies of the South American P. vigua ( = 

 brasilianus auct.). The propriety of this change was previously sug- 

 gested by Mr. Ridgway (Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus, XII, 18S9, p. 13S). 



From what Ave have already said about the treatment of Brissonian 

 names, we find as a matter of course Plofus used in place of Aufiinga, and 

 Linnaeus at 1766 gives Colymbus for the Loons, Gavia being disposed of 

 as having " no type " ! Gavia arctica is not regarded as North Ameri- 

 can, the North American birds recognized under this name bv American 

 writers being referred to Gavia pacijica, which latter is made a subspecies 

 of arctica. 



Cepphus is treated as a synonym of Uria, the Guillemots not being 

 awarded even subgeneric rank. Yet a new genus, Micruria, is proposed 

 for two of the species of Brachyrhamphus — B. hypolencus and B. cra- 

 ven', the former being the type of the new genus. The name kittlitzii 

 Brandt, 1837, is superceded by brevirostris Vigors, 182S — perhaps 



