242 Recent Literature. 



other winters it does not occur at all. It is not warj, and does not even 

 know enough to keep out of the way of dogs along the shore. It is well 

 named the "Foolish" Guillemot, for both its habits and appearance deserve 

 this appellation. In fact it looks like a perfect idiot, swimming over 

 on one side as if one leg were broken, and staring vacantly at its enemies 

 without attempting to escape. Its tout ensemble is stupid and gawky. 



During the winter of 1875 they were so exceedingly abundant that Mr. 

 Comeau shot about a thousand for their feathers, and his dog caught over 

 fifty. They were all in very poor flesh, some being little more than 

 animated skeletons, and a great many died and were washed ashore. 



147. Utaniania torda. Razor-billed Auk. — Not common here, but 

 breeds on the Mingan Islands. 



Ilcccjit ITitfrnturc. 



The Coles Check List and Ornithological Dictionary.* — The 



April number of the Bulletin contained (p. iii) a brief preliminary notice 

 of this work, prepared from advance proof sheets. It was not published 

 until June, and therefore too late for the appearance in our July number 

 of a satisfactory review. As stated in the title the work is a second edition 

 of the "Check List" which originally appeared in 1873 and was reissued 

 in 1874 in connection with "Field Ornithology," as a reflex of the classi- 

 fication and nomenclature of the "Key to North American Birds" (1872), 

 though containing a few additional species. The original List gave 77S 

 names; the present one gives 888, subtracting lof and adding 120. 



"In revising the List," says the author, "for the main purpose of de- 

 termining the ornithological status of every North American bird, the 

 most scrupulous attention has been paid to the matter of nomenclature, — 

 not only as a part of scientific classification, determining the technical 

 relations of genera, species, and varieties to each other, but also as in- 

 volved in writing and speaking the names of birds correctly- The more 

 closely the matter was scrutinized, the more evidences of inconsistency) 



* The Coues Check List of North American Birds. Second Edition, Revised to 

 Date, and entirely Rewritten, under Direction of the Author, with a Dictionary of the 

 Etymology, Orthography, and Orthoepy of the Scientific Names, the Concordance of 

 previous Lists, and a Catalogue of his Ornithological Publications. [Monogram.] 

 Boston. Estes and Lauriat. 1882. i vol. imp. 8vo. pp. 165. 



t The 10 species retired are : Aigiothus fuscescens; Centronyx ochrocepkalus; Sphy- 

 ropicus ■wiUiamsoni; Lamporiils matigo; Agyrtrla linncel; Momotiis cceruleiceps; Ibis 

 thalassina; Ardea wuerdemanni; Sterna "loi/gipennis" {S.pikii Lawr.) ; Podiceps cris- 

 tatiis. The list of added species (too long to print here") is given on pp. 6-8 and 10 

 of the Check List. 



