374 



NATURE 



[jANUAir 



hai been aided by the excellent seriet of specimens 

 now in tho collection of the Natural Histon- Must-urn, 

 the formation of which was, we believe, larjjcly due 

 to his own exertions, and it is much to be hopod that 

 it will not be long before this series is completid by 

 the addition of examples from any lakes the char or 

 whitofish of which are still unrepres<.'nted in the 

 national collection. 



Although the whitefish (»f L<H;lii» I.«»mond and Eck, 

 of the Enjjlish lakes, and of Bala Lake were treated 

 by Mr. Regan as subspecies of a single species in 

 1908; he now treats them on pages 12 1-5 as represent- 

 ing three substantive species, but states on p. 263 

 that they " are only local forms of one species, which 

 is closely related to Corcgontis wartmatmi of the Alps, 

 to forms inhabiting' Scandinavia, and to anadromous 

 Arctic species." Both this and his statement that the 

 " species " of char are " of quite another nature from 

 widely distributed forms, such as the pike or roach," 

 give some indication of the difficulty which he has 

 himself felt in adopting his present position. 



The cyprinoids present a difficulty of a quite 

 different nature ; they are normally gregarious fishes, 

 many well-defined species of which are found in the 

 same waters, and the rudd is proverbial in northern 

 Europe for its disregard of specific distinctions when 

 on the spawning-beds. In these circumstances natural 

 hybrids are by no means infrequent, and in carefullv 

 describing and often figuring these Mr. Regan has 

 rendered readily available information which was pre- 

 viously only accessible to those who were conversant 

 with purely scientific literature. 



The results of recent researches into the life-histories 

 of the salmon and the eel are carefully and clearly 

 summarised, and some information as to the life- 

 histories of other species is given ; but the statement 

 that the eggs of the roach are shed on the bottom is, 

 if not inaccurate, at least not universally true. We 

 cannot blame Mr. Regan for the very inadequate 

 accounts given of the breeding", eggs, and larvae of 

 many species, for these are matters which have been 

 much neglected by naturalists and particularly by 

 British and Irish naturalists, and the available in- 

 formation is, at the best, somewhat meagre. We 

 think, however, that descriptions (and dimensions) 

 ought to have been given of the eggs and larvae of 

 such fishes as the shads, the pike, and at least one 

 typical cyprinoid; such information is to be found in 

 the works of Continental writers, and is of consider- 

 able practical value both to the naturalist and the 

 fisherman. 



Care has been taken throughout to verify the size 

 and weight attained by each species, and, in the case 

 of the pike, the history of the great fish of Loch Ken 

 is given in some detail, and an .account of the large 

 pike taken when Whittlesea Mere was drained is 

 given in an appendix. 



The final chapter, which deals with the origin and 

 geographical distribution of our fresh-water fishes, is, 

 perhaps, one of the most interesting in a book which 

 throughout reflects great credit upon both author and 

 publishers, and deserves to become a standard wock. 



L. W. B. 

 NO. 2203, VOL. 88] 



STUDIES OF BIRD-LIU 

 Studies of Bird-life in Uganda. By Dr. 1 



Somcren and V. G. L. van Someren. v*''^'"'' 

 John Bale, Sons, and Daniellson, Ltd., 191 1.) V 

 1/. iij. 6d. net. 



THESE studies comprise more or less beautiful 

 photographic pictures of the red-headed wood- 

 f>ecker, Egyptian goose, sacred ibis, stone curlew 

 (thicknee), little green-backed heron, sandpiper, ru" 

 necked nightjar, bateleur eagle, darter, cormora;.., 

 black and white African chats, paradise fly-catcher, 

 hagadash ibis, whydah finch, black-headed shrike, 

 crowned crane, and pied kingfisher. The last-named 

 is an excellent picture. That of the crowned cranes 

 is also of interest as showing the appearance of the 

 immature bird at a stage not usually illustrated 

 museums. The red-headed woodpeckers are also 1 

 pictures. There are some charming studies of i 

 and of the little green heron on its nest with eggs ; 

 the darters on their nests amongst the trees, and 

 excellent figure of their white, downy young; anci 

 characteristic representation of the black chat wit!: 

 white splash across the wing, which is such a c 

 stant and charming feature in Uganda landsca(>e> 

 But in a general way it cannot be said that i' 

 collection of pictures is remarkably illustrative 

 bird-life in Uganda. The picture of the Eg^pi: 

 goose might have been done even better in St. Jam> 

 Park. The sandpiper also might have come fr^ 

 many other parts of the world, and there are stu<i 

 of the mature crowned crane issued from the Lonci 

 Zoological Gardens which are better pictures than ; 

 one here given. In fact, when we consider the exti 

 ordinary wealth of bird-life in Uganda (a wealth 

 scarcely equalled elsewhere in the whole continent, 

 since we have in Uganda a mingling of western, 

 eastern, northern, and southern forms), the review >- 

 is a little surprised that the authors should not h. 

 devoted their photographic skill to a wider and mi 

 typical selection. For example, they could have di 

 a great deal to clear up for science disputed poi: 

 about the marabou stork. Marabous abound in : 

 Uganda Protectorate, and snapshots of the fly: 

 marabou would have shown us conclusively wheti 

 (as I maintain) it flies with neck outstretched, 

 whether, as other observers declare, with neck wi 

 drawn, as in the case of herons. 



It should not either have been beyond the opp 

 tunities of the van Somerens to have given us pictu; 

 in a wild state of the Balaeniceps rex; or of tiu- 

 splendid blue plantain-eater of the Uganda forests, or 

 the smaller and equally handsome violaceous plantain- 

 eater, especially when the tameness of these birds is 

 taken into consideration. Then there is the handsome 

 saddle-billed stork. There are many types of heron 

 and egret, of duck and goose, never seen in English 

 parks, of barbets and hornbills, which might have 

 been as easily illustrated as the world-wide stone 

 curlew or cormorant. 



The notes which accompany these well-executed 

 photographs are of considerable interest. The native 

 name of the bird is always given, together with char- 



