340 Recent Literature. [july 



the Commission can then recommend for adoption in an Official List as 

 authorized by the Gratz International Zoological Congress. 



The Ornithological Advisory Committee consisting of Allen, Hartert, 

 Hellmayr, Oberholser, Richmond, Ridgway, Stejneger and Stone, sul^mitted 

 a list of 189 of the more common and more important generic names of 

 birds with references, genotypes, and method of type designation. This 

 list was sent to 350 zoologists and zoological institutions throughout the 

 world as well as to 44 specialists on ornithological nomenclature. As a 

 result objection of some sort or other was raised against 87 names and these 

 were referred back to the Advisory Committee for further opinion as to 

 whether the objections have any weight under the Code. 



The remaining 102 names against which no qtiestion has been raised are 

 forthwith added to the list. 



At first thought it would seem preferable to consider this matter chrono- 

 logically, publication by publication, but it will, we think, be admitted 

 that the plan adopted, of selecting the more familiar and important genera 

 first, is the better, as it will at once establish uniformity in the names most 

 frequently used. The majority of those who desire to use correct names 

 have neither the time nor the technical experience to work the questions 

 out for themselves by the Code, and an international standard list will fill 

 a long-felt want and do more for stability of nomenclature than anything 

 else. Dr. C. Wardell Stiles, Secretary of the Commission and Dr. 

 Charles W. Richmond, Secretary of the Advisory Committee on Orni- 

 thology deserve the thanks of ornithologists for the thorough manner in 

 which they have handled the work and we hope to see the ' Official List ' 

 grow apace on the lines they have established. — W. S. 



Aves of the Zoological Record 1914. ^ — Only those who have labored 

 upon bibliogi'aphies can appreciate the magnitude of the task of compiling 

 the ornithological titles of an entire year; and when we realize the alxsolute 

 necessity of such compilations to systematic work we appreciate our 

 indebtedness to Mr. Sclater. He lists for 1914 a total of 1088 titles as 

 against 1576 for 1913 and 1665 for 1912 — sad evidence of the effect of 

 the war. The, ' International Catalogue of Scientific Literature ' having 

 been discontinued until after the war, the Zoological Society has assumed 

 the publication of the ' Zoological Record ' thereby conferring a great 

 favor upon all zoologists. — • W. S. 



Recent Papers by Hartert.— In ' Novitates Zoologicse ' for April, 

 1916, Vol. XXIII, Dr. Ernst Hartert has a number of important contribu- 

 tions. Under the title ' Notes on Pigeons ' he demonstrates that Strepto- 

 pelia decaocto is the correct name for the Indian Turtle-Dove and that S. 

 roseogrisea is probably the ancester of the tame bird. Other groups are 



1 Zoological Record, Vol. LI. 1914. Aves. W. L. Sclater. Zool. Soc. London. Janu- 

 ary, 1916. pp. 1-77. Price, six shillings. 



