34 Sclater on tlie System a Avium. 



structure of the wing. Air. Wallace's Formicaroid and Anom- 

 alous Passeres correspond nearly with what I call the Oligomy- 

 odas, Trac.heoph.on33, and Pseudoscines, whilst the Oscines are 

 distributed in his arrangement under three heads, as follows: — 



Series A. Typical or Turdoid Passeres. 



Winy with 10 primaries, the first always more or less markedly reduced 

 in size. 



i. Turdidae. 12. Campephagidae. 



2. Sylviidae. 13. Dicruridae. 



3. Timaliidae. 14. Muscicapidae. 



4. Cinclidae. 15. Vireonidae. 



5. Troglodytidae. 16. Pachycephalidae. 



6. Certhiidae. 17. Laniidae. 



7. Paridae. 18. Corvidae. 



8. Leiotrichidae. 19. Paradis 



9. Phyllornithidae. 20. Meliphagida-. 



10. Pycnonotidae. 21. Nectariniidae. 



11. Oriolidae. 



B. Ian vgroid Passeres. 



Winy with <) primaries, the first of which is fully developed and usually 

 very long. 



1. Mo 6. Ampelidae. 



2. Mniotiltidae. ' 7. Hirundinidae. 



3. Ccerebidae. 8. Tanagridae. 



4. Drepanidae. 9. Fringillidas. 



5. I )ica idae. 10. Icteridas. 



Series C. Sturnoid Passeres. 



Winy with 10 primaries, the first of which is rudimentary. 



1. Ploceidae. 3. Artamidae 



2. Sturnidae. 4. Alaudidae. 



The objection to this arrangement is that it separates some very 

 nearly allied forms far too widely. The "spurious primary" 

 which Air. Wallace relies upon to divide his Tanagroids and 

 Sturnoids is not alwavs even a generic character. In J'ireo. for 

 example, it varies in the different species, being present in some 

 and absent in others. Mr. Wallace puts the Alaudidas amongst 

 his Sturnoids; but in some larks ( Calandrella &c.) the spurious 

 primary is altogether wanting. The Ploceidie and Fringillidae, 

 which are barely distinguishable as families, fall under different 

 heads, as do the Sturnidae and Icterida*. Yet there cannot be a 

 doubt as to the intimate connexion of the two last-named families. 



