124 Recent Literature. [f^ 



and the continent of North America. His conclusions agree with those 

 already advanced by Mr. Chapman and Mr. Riley. 



A number of new records are established for several of the islands visited, 

 and a new warbler, Dendroica flavescens, already described by Mr. Todd 

 (Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington, XXII, p. 171) was discovered on Abaco. — 



w. s. 



Mathews's ' The Birds of Australia.'— Part 5 ^ bears date October 31, 

 1911, and completes the first volume, except the introductory matter and 

 index, which will form Part 6, and when ready will be sent to subscribers 

 without extra charge. The first volume warrants the liberal praise be- 

 stowed upon Part 1 (Auk, XXVIII, p. 135, 136), as regards the character 

 of both the text and plates; and the Parts have thus far appeared with 

 commendable promptness and regularity. The present Part concludes 

 the Ralliformes, and includes also the Podicipediformes and the Sphenis- 

 ciformes, the species treated being numbered 64-74. In addition to the 

 technical and biographical matter usual to works of this character, the rela- 

 tions of the Australian forms to their congeners are considered, the genera, 

 species and subspecies being critically revised from the author's viewpoint in 

 respect to status and nomenclature. In the present Part the new genus 

 Mantellornis is established, with Notornis hoeckstetteri Meyer as the type. 

 Two new subspecies of Porphyrio are described as P. melanotus fletcheras 

 (Tasmania) and P. m. neomelanotus (Northwest Australia), and the little 

 known Fulica alba White is considered at length. The only two speci- 

 mens known to be extant came probably from New Zealand. Three other 

 new forms here described are Podiceps cristatus christiani, Aptenodytes 

 patagonica halli, Eudyptula minor iredalia. We regret that we are un- 

 able to agree with Mr. Mathews in the use of Podiceps in place of Colym- 

 bus, and of Penguinus in place of Catarractes, for reasons already given 

 (Auk, XXVIII, 1911, p. 496). Mr. Mathews now designates as type 

 of Penguinus, Aptenodytes chrysocome Forster (1781), instead of Phaethon 

 demursus Linne, formerly designated by him or the type. Contrary 

 to most previous authors, he now considers Linne's species indetermin- 

 able. He states that it, " though undoubtedly a ' Crested Penguin,' 

 is obviously a young bird, and unfortunately must be regarded as indetermi- 

 nable. Brunnich's genus was certainly founded on the characters of this 

 bird, but as no species was named by him, I herewith designate Apteno- 

 dytes chrysocome Forster as the type of Brunnich's genus," — a species, 

 by the way, not described till eleven years after Brunnich's genus was 

 founded! Yet he adds: " The course I now advocate I consider better, 



1 The Birds of Australia. By Gregory M. Matiiews, Member of tiie Australian 

 Ornithologists' Union and the British Ornithologists' Union. With hand-coloured 

 Plates. Volume I, Part 5, London: Witherby and Co., 326 High Holborn, W. C. 

 October 31st, 1911. Roy, 4to, pp. 32.5-286, pU. 59-67, with 3 full-page'text cuts. 

 Price, £2. 2s. per part. 



