486 Letters, Announcements, ^c. 



Herein are described five new species of Central-American birds. 

 Two of them are Trochilidce horn Costa Rica : — Glaucis ceneus, 

 very closely allied to G. affinis, Lawr., a species common in 

 Panama and New Granada; and Eupherusa nigriventris, appa- 

 rently a very distinct form, having a black breast. Thaumantias 

 lucice is another member of the same family, but from Honduras, 

 and said to be allied to T. linncei. The fourth bird described as 

 new is Dromococcyx rufigularis, which Mr. Salvin tells us he 

 has little doubt is only the young of D. phasianellus (Max.) 

 {D. mexicanus, Bp.), a species which certainly does occur in the 

 same country [cf. Ibis, 1859, p. 133). The last is ^?"«mic?e5 

 albiventris, and is the Central- American race of the wide-ranging 

 A. cayanensis, which it very closely resembles, but from which it 

 differs in the characters pointed out by Mr. Lawrence. It is 

 the common and indeed the only species of the genus found in 

 Guatemala. 



XXXVII. — Letters, Announcements, &:c. 



Mr. P. L. ScLATER has kindly put into our hands for publica- 

 tion the following letter : — 



H.M.S. 'Nassau,' Ancud, Cliiloe, 

 May 26th, 1868. 

 My dear Sir, — I have to thank you for your letter of 16th 

 March, which I had the pleasure of receiving a few days ago. 

 I am very glad to hear that my letters have interested you, and 

 that you and Mr. Salvin have written an article for * The Ibis ' 

 on the birds I sent home last year*, and I am nmch obliged for 

 your hints as to zoological points to be attended to. I will act 

 upon them, as far as my opportunities will permit, during next 

 season, which I think wilj probably be my last in the Magellanic 

 province. I fear, however, that I may not be able to gain much 

 precise information as to the Otariae, as they will not be easy to 

 procure, and it is next to impossible to make a thoroughly 

 careful examination of such large animals in the very confined 

 space at my disposal in this vessel, as almost the entire room for 



* IVide antea, pp. 183-189.— Ed.] 



