320 Letters, Extracts, Notices, ^c. 



able to bring about a general understanding really labour at 

 this unsatisfactory subject^ and those who do work set up 

 their owu systems of nomenclature intended to be good 

 for all time back to Linn?eus and for the indefinite future. 

 So long as this state of affairs lasts^ Microhms and Cypsehis 

 must remain as doubtfully-valid names ; one of them is 

 correct, but nobody can presume to say which. 



I amj Sir, 



Yours &c., 



L, W. WiGLESWORTH. 



Konigl. zoologisches Museum, Dresden, 

 Dec. 21, 1893. 



SiR^ — Mr. Dresser some time ago described a Roller in 

 my collection, which, without comparison, there being at 

 that time no specimens in England, 1 had taken for Coracias 

 spatulata, Trimen, as Coracias iveigalli (Ann. & Mag. N. H. 

 (6) vi. p. 351, 1890). 



Dr. SharpCj in Cat. B. M. vol. xvii. p. 23, summarily 

 dismisses the species with the observation, '' Notwithstanding 

 it has the appearance of being fully adult, I believe that it 

 is really only an immature individual. ^^ 



Dr. Sharpe has never had an opportunity of comparing my 

 bird with the immature C. spatulata at Berlin, therefore his 

 conjecture is mere assumption. 



Through the kindness of the Bishop of Zanzibar, I have 

 just received a second, evidently adult, specimen, nearly 

 similar to the former, from the same locality, i. e. Newala, 

 north of the Rovuma river. I think, therefore, that there 

 can be no doubt of the vahdity of Mr. Dresser's species, of 

 which there is a very accurate figure in his monograph of 

 the Coraciidse. I may mention that C. caudata is common 



in the same district. 



Yours &C.J 



H. B, Tristram. 



The College, Durham, 



^January 8, 1894. 



Sir, — It is so long since Blyth, Sundevall, and other orni- 



