iS9il Recent Lilcrature. ^8t^ 



except on the ground of haste or curclessne.ss, since tliev are duly re- 

 corded on unquestionable authority in the vvorlis referred to by the 

 autiiors in their preface, — e. g.^ Picoidcs arcticiis, Oiocoiis ulfcstris, 

 Empidonaxjlaviventris, ^uiscaliis quiscula (Oieiis, Ammodratntis henslozvi, 

 Alelosfiza lincolni, Doidroica palmariim hypochrysca, Seiurus mo/acilla, 

 Anthus fcnsylvaiiiciis, etc. Larim arireutatiis should of course be L. ar- 

 gcntutits smithsonianus. The list is attractively gotten up, and is remark- 

 ably free from typographical errors; yet it is marred by a blemish one 

 would hardly look for in a scientific publication of the present day, namely, 

 the use of capital initial letters for all specific and subspecific names. 

 Evidently the authors allowed their own good judgment to be swayed by 

 the bad counsels of the printer. — ^J. A. A. 



Merriam's List of Birds observed in Idaho.* — The ornithological results 

 of Dr. Merriam's 'Biological Reconnoissance of south-central Idaho' dur- 

 ing the season of 1S90, consists of an annotated list of 158 species, 94 of 

 them recorded for the first time for the State, and the discovery of a new 

 Owl, allied to Megascops. Jlammcoliis, and named M. fiammcolus. ida- 

 /loeiisis. This new form differs from AT. Jlammeolus in being smaller and 

 paler. A well-executed colored plate accompanies the description. Be- 

 sides the general list there is a special 'List of Birds noted in the Saw 

 Tooth Mountains, at or near Saw Tooth or Alturas Lake-, September 25 

 to October 4, 1S90' (pp. 19, 20), numbering 43 species, and various refer- 

 ences to birds of particular localities in the general introduction. 



As stated by Dr. Merriam, Idaho has thus far remained a veritable 

 terra incognita, so far as detailed knowledge of its natural history is con 

 cerned, less being known of it than of any other State or Territory in the 

 Union. The present report on the work done there during the season of 

 1890 occupies about 120 octavo pages (North American Fauna, No. 5), of 

 which about 30 are devoted to an exposition of the physical characters 

 and life zones of the region explored, and about 60 to a detailed report on 

 the mammals obtained, of whicli 12 of the 67 species here enumerated are 

 described as new. It is needless to say that much light is thrown upon 

 the physical features of the legion and their relation to its faunal and 

 floral characteristics. Considering the limited time spent in field work 

 and the small force of assistants employed, a surprisingly large amount of 

 work was accomplished. — ^J. A. A. 



Maynard's 'Contributions to Science."! — The 'Contributions' contain 

 articles relating to nearly all branches of natural history. Only the fol- 



*Annotated List of Birds observed in Idaho during the Summer and Fall of 1890, 

 with Notes on Species previously recorded from the State. By Dr. C. Hart Merriam. 

 North American Fauna, No. 5, July 1890, pp. 89-108. 



fContributions to Science. By Charles J. Maynard. Illustrated with hand- 

 colored plates, drawn on stone by the Author. Vol. I, '"April, 1889-Jan. 1890." 

 Newtonville, Mass. : Published by the Author. 8vo. pp. 204, pll. xvi. with numer- 

 ous cuts in the text. [No. 3, dated ''October, 1889," was received March 24, 1890; 

 No. 4, dated "January, 1890," was received April 2, 1891.] 



