286 HeiT E. Ilartert on the Caprimulgidae. 



tion between the American species generally placed in the 

 genus Antrostoinus and the species of CaprimuJgus from 

 Europe, Asia, Africa, Australia, and Madagascar. This 

 statement is not surprising, nor is it new, as several good orni- 

 thologists — Sclater, Baird, Lawrence, and RidgvA-ay, among 

 others — have remarked the same before; but, in spite of their 

 own acknowledgments, most of these authors have continued 

 to use tlie name Antrostomtis. There is, however, no reason 

 to retain the name for a genus which lias no value whatever. 

 Caprimvlgus caroUtwnsis, the type of the genus A/ifro- 

 stomus, has, singularly enough, lateral filaments to the rictal 

 bristles, but in every other respect it is so entirely similar to 

 Caprimulgus rufus and other forms that it would be absurd 

 to separate it geuerieally from them on account of these small 

 filaments. 



4- (10) Caprimulgus macromystax, Wagl. 



When I began to work on the American Caprimulgidre 

 in the British Museum, Mr. Salvin called my special 

 attention to Caprimulgus macromystax, poorly described 

 in the ' Isis ' from a tailless specimen in the Munich 

 Museum. From various notes by Sclater and Salvin, and 

 from the descriptions in l^aird. Brewer, and Ridgway's 

 'North-American Birds,' and Ridgway's 'Manual N. A. B.,' 

 it appeared to me that the form called Antrostomus macro- 

 mystax by the American authors was j)robably not the 

 same as that so called by English ornithologists. Professor 

 R. Hertwig has been kind enough to lend me the type of 

 C. macromystax, and this has enabled me (although the speci- 

 men is in poor condition) to ascertain easily enough that the 

 specimens in the British jNInseum are correctly named, aud 

 further that they are identical with Antrostomus vociferus 

 arizonce of Brewster. The latter is well described in the 

 'Auk,' and is a very recognizable subspecies, although con- 

 nected with Caprimulgus vociferus by intermediate forms. It 

 must be called Caprimulgus vociferus macromystax (Wagl.) if 

 trinomials are used. 



The Antrostomus macromystax, Baird, Ridgway, &c. (uec 



