iS9».J Recent Literature. 375 



counted more than a dozen of these birds within an area considerably less 

 than an acre in extent. In the same locality, too, I have on more than 

 one occasion surprised a Woodpecker feedin<^ on the brilliant scarlet 

 berries of the 'clammy-cherry'; they will also eat the berries of the pimento 

 and, as I am assured, the fruit of the wild fig. 



I have seen the nest holes of this species but the situations were always 

 too inaccessible to admit of my examining them. Three eggs in my col- 

 lection, from the Parish of St. Thomas, measure i.ii X .74 inch. 



RECENT LITERATURE. 



Bendire's 'Life Histories of North American Birds.'* — The first of a 

 series of volumes, entitled as above, is now before us. It treats of 146 

 species and subspecies, beginning with the Grouse and ending with the 

 Owls, thus including the Gallinaceous Birds, the Pigeons, and the Birds of 

 Prey. This long contemplated work, all things considered, could not have 

 fallen to better hands, or appeared under more favorable auspices. It early 

 interested the late Professor Baird, who for many years cherished the plan 

 of publishing, under the auspices of the Smithsonian Institution, a com- 

 prehensive work on this subject. It was begun, indeed, as early as 1857, 

 when a small volume was published on the Hawks and Owls, under the 

 authorship of the late Dr. T. M. Brewer. It was found necessary, how- 

 ever, to discontinue the enterprise, for lack of sufficient material. During 

 the thirty-five years that have since elapsed, not only has our knowledge of 

 the subject greatly increased, but the materials for description and illus- 

 tration have multiplied many fold. While there are still deficiencies, 

 they are comparatively few, and perhaps the best way to supply them is to 

 publish what is known and thus the more pointedly draw attention to the 

 gaps in our knowledge of the subject. In a work of this magnitude it is a 

 great thing to have made a start, and we trust the present volume is but 

 the forerunner of a series of volumes to appear at frequent intervals till 

 the grand undertaking is completed. 



Captain Bendire's method of treatment seems well chosen; the matter, 

 as too often is the case in 'egg-books,' is not limited to a description of 

 nests and eggs, but includes, as the title implies, the general life histories 

 of the species treated — their geographical distribution, their migrations, 



* Smithsonian Institution. | United States National Museum. | Special Bulletin 

 No. I. I — I Life Histories | of | North American Birds | with special reference to | 

 their Breeding Habits and Eggs, with | Twelve Lithographic Plates. | By | Charles 

 Bendire, Captain, U. S. Army (Retired), | Honorary Curator of the Department of 

 Oology, U. S. National Museum, I Member of the American Ornithologists' Union. 

 I — I Washington: | Government Printing Office. | 1S92. — 4to, pp. viii, 414, and 12 

 CO ed plates. 



