Recent Literature. Ill 



Reichenow and Schalow's Record of the Literature of Or- 

 nithology for 1S79.* — Although the compilers of this excellent report 

 regret its late appearance, in consequence of unanticipated delavs in 

 printing, their promptness is still commendable. The report appears to 

 be very carefully and satisfactorily prepared, the annotations being suf- 

 ficiently full and explicit. 



Reichenow and Schalow's Compendium of newly described 

 Genera and Species of Birds. t The authors of the "Compendium" 

 are placing ornithologists under a debt of gratitude in promptly bringing 

 together the diagnoses of the new genera and species of current ornith- 

 ological literature. The last installment apparently covers the first half 

 of the year 18S0, and the families from Cuculidce upward through the 

 Oscines. The " Compendium '* gives full transcripts of the original 

 diagnoses. — J. A. A. 



Cory's "Beautiful and Curious Birds of the World." — In the 

 Bulletin for October, 18S0 (Vol. V. p. 236). Part I of Mr. Cory's beautiful 

 work was noticed from advance sheets. This part was published shortly 

 afterwards and early in February Part II appeared. The latter is of es- 

 pecial interest to North American students from the superb plate of the 

 Great Auk (Alca impennis') which it contains. This figure, taken, we are 

 told, from a specimen in the British Museum, represents an adult bird 

 sitting on a bluff overlooking the sea, while on a rocky promontory in the 

 background are grouped the erect forms of several others. The general 

 execution of this plate is both spirited and artistic while the coloring is 

 quite beyond criticism. 



In the accompanying letter-press Mr. Cory gives some well chosen 

 extracts from the principal accounts that have appeared relating to the 

 habits of the species, and to the history of its supposed extinction. The 

 statement respecting the number of the skins, eggs, and skeletons known 

 to exist in the various museums and collections of the world, gives 

 information of much interest. There are in all seventy-one or seven-two 

 skins, of which Germany has twenty and Great Britain twenty-two. Of 

 eggs there are sixty-five, forty-one of which are preserved in Great Britain 

 alone. Nine complete skeletons, besides a great number of detached 

 bones, complete the list. 



In addition to the plate of the Great Auk. Part II contains equally beau- 

 tiful representations of the King Bird of Paradise (Cicintwrus regius) and 

 an Apteryx (Apteryx australis). If, as we have every reason to believe 

 will be the case, the author carries through this work in the way in which 



* Zoologischer Jahresbericht fur 1879. Herausgegeben von der Zoologischen Station 

 zu Neapel. Redigirt von Prof. J. Victor Carus (W. Engelmann, Leipzig). 5. Aves. Bd. 

 II, pp. 1108-1161. Referenten Dr. Ant. Reichenow und H. Schalow. 



f Compendium der neu beschriebenen Gattungen und Arten. Von Anton Reichenow 

 und Hermann Schalow. Journal fiir Ornithologie, 1879, pp. 308-329, 420-437, 1880, pp. 

 97-102, 194-209, 314-324. 



