140 Letters, Extracts, Notices, &;c. 



In writing of Thalurania ivagleri (p. 508) he incidentally 

 mentions that birds in one of the Gould cases in the British 

 Museum seemed to him to be wrongly named Eucephala 

 grayi. But E. grayi, as Gould very well knew, is quite a 

 different bird and well known as an inhabitant of Ecuador, 

 and cannot be confused with T. wagleri by any one at 

 all conversant with the Trochilidse. The correct name of 

 T. wagleri is T. bicolor (Gm.), as long ago determined by 

 Elliot and others. 



I quite agree with Mr. Lodge's remarks on the unsatis- 

 factory nature of the plates representing Humming-birds 

 and on the way stuffed specimens are mounted. But no 

 representation, either as drawings or mounted skins, can 

 give any idea of the appearance of these birds in flight, in 

 which attitude they are most commonly seen. The best 

 representations of resting Humming-birds that I know of 

 are those of Mr. Baron, now to be seen in the British 

 Museum, Mr. Baron mounted all these birds himself from 

 freshly-shot specimens, and the positions in which he has 

 placed them are most life-like. 



Yours &c., 



OSBERT SaLVIN. 

 10 Chandos Street, Cavendish Square, 

 December 2nd, 1896. 



Mr. D. G. Elliot's Expedition to Somaliland. — Our friend 

 Mr. D. G. Elliot returned from his excursion to Somaliland 

 (see Ibis, 1896, p. 427) in October last, and left London for 

 Chicago on Nov. 14th. He achieved his main object in 

 getting a good series of specimens of the Antelopes of Somali- 

 land for the Field Columbian Museum (amongst them 

 examples of the rare " Beira," Dorcotragus megalotis). 

 Mr. E. Dodson, who accompanied him as collector, obtained 

 about 300 bird-skins, the preliminary examination of which 

 indicates that there are probably some novelties amongst 

 them, though none of very prominent originality. Mr. Elliot, 

 we regret to say, contracted fever on the Hand, and per- 

 formed the journey of 200 miles back to the coast on a 



