Recently published Ornithological Works. 131 



Even Mr. Seebohm keeps Ruticilla distinct. Nor should 

 " rubecula " be changed to " rubeculus." " Rubecula " is^ we 

 believe, a substantive (see * Ducange^), like many other Lin- 

 nean specific terms. Of the incorrectness of using Acanthis 

 for the Linnets the Editor has already spoken (see Ibis, 1892, 

 p. 555). Acanthis is a mere synonym of Carduelis. Chloris 

 of Cuvier, not Ligurinus, as employed in the B. O. U. List, 

 seems to be really the oldest generic name for the Greenfinch, 

 so that we shall have to follow Dr. Reichenow in calling this 

 familiar bird Chloris hortensis, unless we succumb to the 

 " Scomber scomber" precedent. Micropus is no doubt an 

 older name than Cypselus for the Swifts. But Micropus is 

 a Linnean name used in Botany for a genus of Composites. 

 We regret to see that it has been resuscitated not only by 

 Dr. Reichenow and the Americans, but by Mr. Hartert 

 (Cat. B. xvi. p. 437). Mr. Hartert, however, is wrong; 

 moi'eover this term had already been used in the ' Catalogue 

 of Birds' (vi. p. 64) for a genus of Timeliidse. Though 

 the names of plants and birds may be nearly alike, they 

 mu st not be identical ! " lynx " (as is well known) is a 

 dissyllable, with the first syllable long (i-ynx), and should 

 not be written '' Jynx." * " Melanaetus " of Linnaeus 

 for the Imperial Eagle is at least doubtful. Better keep to 

 the first certain name, which seems to be " heliaca " of 

 Savigny. 



It has been most clearly shown in this Journal as long ago 

 as 1879 (Ibis, 1879, p. 196) that the proper name of the 

 Purple Waterhen of Spain and Sicily is Porphyrio caruleus 

 (VandelH). It has likewise been shown {l.s. c.) that there 

 is no such name as '^ veterum, Gm.," and, moreover, that the 

 species from Persia upon which it has been (wrongly) 

 supposed that Gmelin bestowed the name is P. poliocephalus 

 of India (see Ibis, 1884, p. 229, and 1891, p. 136). It is, 

 therefore, a double error to continue to call the South- 

 European Porphyrio " Porphyrio veterum," as Dr. Reichenow 

 does in his footnote, p. 43. 



As regards the substitution of Colymbus for Podiceps as 

 * Cf. Wbartou, lljis, 1879, p. 4;>J. 



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