Bibliographical Notice. 269 



A brief sketch is then given of the general scheme of the work, 

 followed by a key to the families of Lepidoptera, of which the 

 author now admits 52, 7 of which include butterflies; and these, 

 though placed at the head of the table, are numbered from 33 to 39, 

 their place being thus indicated between the Castniadse and tho 

 Euschemonida?, an arrangement which will probably not be accepted 

 by all entomologists. As the plan of the work is to begin with the 

 most highly organized families and to work downwards, the present 

 volume is devoted to the Syntoniidse, which the author now places 

 asFam. 1. This group was formerly regarded as a section of the 

 Zygaenidao, between the true Zyga-nidae and the Arctiadae, which 

 here form Fam. 2 ; but the Zygaenidae are now removed to a great 

 distance, standing as Fam. 41. Then follow general observations 

 on the Syntomidae, a key to the genera, and a table showing their 

 comparative affinities, and then the author plunges in medias res. 



Before speaking of the work itself we may mention that it is 

 introduced by a conventional preface by Sir William Flower, followed 

 by a Systematic Index, the value of which would, however, we think, 

 have been much increased for purposes of ready reference if the 

 names of the authors had been appended to the species and genera, 

 an improvement which we hope to see adopted in future volumes. 

 Ihere is also a general Alphabetical Index at the end of the book. 



1184 species are described in the present volume, including many 

 which are not in the British Museum, but of which authentic 

 specimens have been examined by the author. It has wisely been 

 decided, however, that no new species are to be described in the 

 work, except those of which the British Museum actually possesses 

 the types. 



The descriptions are short, but will probably be sufficient for the 

 identification of the species, especially as a large number are figured. 

 We may, however, express a hope that too great uniformity of plan 

 may not lead to too mechanical a method of work — an error into 

 which all naturalists are liable to fall when they are required to 

 describe a large number of species. 



As the identification of species is one of the principal objects in a 

 work of this description, it would be unfair to expect that much 

 space could be given to metamorphoses or other detailed information. 

 What a fairly complete account of individual species would really 

 imply, entomologists will soon have an opportunity of learning from 

 Mr. Tutt's forthcoming work on the British Zygaenidae — though 

 even Mr. Tutt, so far as we know, deals chiefly, if not exclusively, 

 only with synonymy, external characters and variation, range, habits, 

 localities, metamorphoses, and food. A series of volumes would be 

 required to contain all the attainable information relating to ahnost 

 any single species of animal or plant, as every naturalist must be 

 well aware. 



The determination of species is much facilitated in the present 

 work by elaborate tables, which are specially useful in the case of 

 the larger genera, and by the numerous illustrations. Each genus, 

 Ann. & Mag. N. Hist. Ser. 7. Vol. iii. 20 



