.] Recetii Literature. 



199 



ogy in Canada, very promptly and eftectuallj disposes of the rest of 

 tlie scheme as impracticable and mischievous. He states, in very plain 

 terms, that Canada has not at present the means for undertaking such a 

 task, having neither ornithologists equipped with the requisite experience 

 and technical knowledge of the subject, nor collections sufficiently large 

 to serve as anything like an adequate basis for such work. He very 

 rudely pricks the bubble of Canadian assumption by stating some ver^' 

 plain facts, namely : "If all the bird skins in the Dominion were combined 

 they would not make a good working collection. In no one Museum in 

 the country are the birds of even a small locality well represented. There 

 are a few creditable private collections, but none of these contain a suffi- 

 cient series of skins to show the variations in plumage of all the species — 

 the variations of sex and age and seasons, to say nothing of individual 

 and geographical variation." This is not said unkindly, nor with a view 

 so much to expose the weakness of Canadian ornithological resources, as 

 to arouse greater activity, and particularly to stimulate interest in orni- 

 thology and kindred sciences in Government circles, in connection with 

 the present Canadian Geological Survey. While this Survey has done 

 admirable work in many departments of science, and has earned an envia- 

 able reputation for the originality and thoroughness of its work, it has 

 given little attention to zoology. This seems primarily due to an impres- 

 sion, rather generally entertained across the border, that the animals of 

 Canada are already well-known. We trust that Mr. Chamberlain's plain 

 statements, his appeals, and his example of energetic and intelligent 

 activity in his favorite fields of ornithology and mammalogy, will arouse 

 general interest and lead to fruitful results. — J. A. A. 



Sclater and Hudson's 'Argentine Ornithology.'* — A hand-book of the 

 birds of any portion of South America is sure to meet a 'long-felt want,' 

 and when undertaken by authors so well fitted for the task as in the present 

 case is to be especially welcomed. Dr. Sclater's long familiarity with 

 'Neotropical' birds renders him eminently qualified for the technical portion 

 of the work ; while Mr. Hudson's long residence in the Argentine Republic 

 and his unquestioned ability as an observer, imparts to the biographical 

 part an equal trustworthiness. Rarely more than a page is devoted to a 

 species, 229 species being treated in a space of 208 pages. Some of the 

 more common or better known species are noticed by Mr. Hudson at 

 considerable length, while in other cases there is little more than the 

 technical description. Mr. Barrow's notes on "the 'Birds of the Lower 

 Uruguay,' published in this journal, 1883-84, are often quoted at length. 

 References are given to the special literature of the subject. The technical 



* Argentine Ornithology. | A | Descriptive Catalogue | of the | Birds of the Argentine 

 Republic. | By | P. L. Sclater, M. A., Ph.D., F. R. S., Etc. | With Notes on their 

 Habits I by I W. H. Hudson, C. M. Z. S., | late of Buenos Ayres | [Vignette]. The 

 Cariama. | — | Volume I. | — | London: | R. H. Porter, 6 Tenterden Street, W. | 1888. 

 8vo, pp. i-xv, 1-208, pll. col. i-x. 



