On the Nomenclature of South-American Birds. 239 



tail-feathers as whitish, an appearance not shown in any of 

 the specimens examined by me, which have been as follows : — 



E Mus. Brit. 



a. [ $ ] ad. sk. Malacca. India Museum. [Horsf. & Moore, 



Cat. p. 678.] 



b, c. [cJ ad.] sk. Malacca {W. Harvey). 



d. [(J ad.] sk. Malacca {Hugh Cuming). 



e. ? ad. sk. Mount Ophir, Malacca (^. /J. ^a//«ce). 

 /. ^ ad. sk. Sumatra {A. R. Wallace). 



g,h. [cJ ? ad.] sk. N.W. Borneo {H. Low), 

 i. Juv. sk. N.W. Boraeo {H Loio). 



E. Mus. E. Hargitt. 



« [c?]; *, c [ ? ]. Sk. Borneo. 



d. Juv. sk. N.W. Borneo [Hugh Low) . 



€, S; I> 9, ? • Sk. N.W. Borneo [Hugh Low). 



XVII. — On some necessary Changes in the Nomenclature of 

 South- American Birds. — By Hans, Graf von Berlepsch, 



Ornithologists will generally find me unwilling ttT* change 

 long-established nomenclature, especially when there is no 

 other reason for doing so than to call into usage obscure old 

 names which may have a slight advantage of priority, but in 

 other respects had better be ignored. I mean such names 

 as those of Miiller, Boddaert, and others, which have only 

 during the last few years come into usage, and have been 

 called forth to supersede denominations which had become 

 quite familiar to us, being founded on descriptions unmis- 

 takably intended for the species bearing them. Nevertheless 

 I am of opinion that we ought to change (or erase from 

 our list) even the most familiar denomination if it can 

 be proved that it was originally intended for another species, 

 or if the description is so vague that it is quite impossible to 

 say what bird the author of the name really meant by it. 



In the following pages I propose to refer to some such, or 

 similar, cases in which I believe it is necessary to change the 

 names usually applied to certain species : — 



