68 Recent Literature. L Jan- 



generic names which have lapsed into synonymy. But suppose it had 

 turned out that Cypselus was not merely a synonym of an earlier name 

 for the same genus, but was preoccupied in some other department of 

 zoology, or for a genus in some other family of birds. The propriety 

 and even desirability of changing the family name derived from Cypselus 

 would then be obvious. In fact, such change would be in accordance 

 with current usage. Hence Canon V of the A. O. U. Code of Nomen- 

 clature, which rules that "When a generic name becomes a synonym, a 

 current family or subfamily name based upon such generic name becomes 

 untenable." We believe that a rule in nomenclature, if it is to have any 

 value, must be a strict rule, and hence not open to exceptions, to be deter- 

 mined bv the individual preferences of authors. 



Mr. Hartert considers, and apparently with good reason, that our North 

 American Micropus melanoleucus is not congeneric with the Old World 

 species of Micropus (type, Hirundo apus L.), and has accordingly insti- 

 tuted (p. 459) for it the new genus Aeronautes. He also proposes the new 

 genus Claudia (p. 469) for the South American Cypselus squamata Cass. 



Mr. Hartert sees no reason for recognizing the genus Antrostomus 

 Nuttall as distinct from Caprimulgus {cf. Ibis, April, 1892, p. 285). He 

 therefore places all the species, from both North and South America, for 

 a long time generally referred to Antrostomus, in the genus Caprimulgus, 

 which, as thus defined, includes about 50 species and subspecies, and has 

 a nearly cosmopolitan distribution. 



The Antrostomus tnacromystax of Baird and Ridgway {cf. Ridgw.,Man. 

 N. Am. Bds., p. 298), is described as a new species, under the name 

 Caprimulgus salvini (Ibis, 1892, p. 287), it being not the Caprimulgus 

 tnacromystax Wagler, which Mr. Hartert makes identical with Brewster's 

 Antrostomus vociferus arizonce. Thus C. tnacromystax Wagler becomes 

 C. vociferus tnacromystax (Wagl.) Hartert. 



Phalatnoptilus nuttalli nitidus Brewst. and P. n. californicus Ridgw. 

 are not considered as separable, even as subspecies, from P. nuttalli. We 

 are of opinion, however, that this conclusion is open to revision. 



It is interesting to note that a specimen {$ ad.) of Otophanes macleodi 

 Brewst. is reported from the Salvin-Godman Collection, collected at 

 Zapotlan, Jalisco, Mexico, by Mr. W. Lloyd, making the second specimen 

 of this peculiar form thus far known to science. 



The North American species of Chordeiles stand as in the A. O. U. 

 Check-List, except that C. texensis is made a subspecies of C. acutipennis 

 — the status formerly accorded it by American writers. 



In Volume XVII, Mr. Sharpe treats the families Leptosomatidae, Cor- 

 aciidae (Rollers), Meropodidee (Bee-eaters), Alcedinidae (Kingfishers), 

 Momotidae (Mot-mots), Todida? (Todies), and Coliidas (Colies), and Mr. 

 Grant the Bucerotes (Hornbills) and Trogones (Trogons). These nine 

 families include 397 species (exclusive of subspecies), represented in the 

 collection of the British Museum by 7904 specimens. The Kingfishers 

 number 183 species (besides 30 subspecies), the Hornbills 68, the 

 Trogons 47, the Bee-eaters 36, the Rollers 25, leaving 37 species only to 



