ORNITHOLOGICAL CLUB. 



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Notices of five recent Ornithological Papers. — The first three 

 numbers of the " Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London " for 

 1876 contain several important papers upon the anatomy and classifi- 

 cation of several groups of birds, by Mr. A. H. Garrod, while among the 

 numerous other ornithological articles of more or less special interest are 

 papers by Mr. Howard Saunders, on the Skau Gulls and on the Terns ; 

 by Messrs. Sclater and Salvin, on the Anaiidce of " Neotropical " America ; 

 an abstract of a memoir by Mr. W. K. Parker on JEgithognathous birds ; 

 and a paper by Mr. W. H. Hudson on the habits of some of the Rails of 

 the Argentine Republic. Among the numerous new species of birds 

 figured and described are quite a number from the Andean Region of 

 South America. 



Among Mr. Garrod's contributions is a short paper (1. c. pp. 275 - 277) 

 on the anatomy of the Courlan (Aramus scohpaceus). He finds it to have, 

 on the whole, decidedly closer alfinities with the Cranes (Gnts) than with 

 any other group, especially in respect to its osteology, notwithstanding its 

 many external resemblances to the Rails. Hence Mr. GaiTod's researches 

 confirm the views of recent systematists in respect to the affinities of this 

 peculiar and interesting form. Mr. Garrod also Avrites (1. c. p]i. 335-345, 

 pis. xxvi - xxviii) concerning the anatomy of the Darter (Plotus anhin(ja\ 

 a bird whose anatomy, aside from its skeleton, had previously received 

 little attention, ^fr. Garrod finds in its visceral anatomy several quite pe- 

 culiar features, one of which is the protection of the pyloric orifice by " a 

 mat of lengthy hair-like processes, much like cocoanuL fibre, which nearly 

 half fills the second stomach." These hair-like fibres are found to consid- 

 erably resemble in structure true cutaneous hairs. In general terms, the 

 Darter may be said to present many of the features characteristic of the 

 Gannets, Pelicans, and their allies, in an exaggerated degree. 



The most important and interesting of Mr. Garrod's contributions is 

 a paper "On some Anatomical Characters which bear upon the Major 

 Divisions of the Passerine Birds" (1. c. pp. 506-519, pis. xlviii-liii). 

 Mr. Garrod attaches great importance to the mode of insertion of one of 

 the muscles of the wing (the tensor patarjii brevis), to the character of the 

 syrinx, the absence or presence of either the femoral or the sciatic artery, 

 etc., to which points the researches here detailed are mainly directed. He- 

 concludes his paper with a tabular arrangement of the larger groups of 

 the Passeres, expressive of his views of their affinities. 



Mr. Howard Saunders's paper (1. c. pp. 317-332, pi. xxiv) on the 

 Skau or Jager Gulls (Stercorariince) is devoted to the synonymy and 

 range of the species, with incidental remarks on their progressive changes 

 o\ plumage. Mr. Saunders recognizes six species, all of which he refers 



