152 BRITISH BIRDS. 



Genus STRIX. 



The genus Strix was founded in 1766, by Linnaeus, in his ' Systema 

 Naturae/ i. p. 133, to contain all the Owls. Linnaeus had the good luck 

 to adopt a binomial system of nomenclature ; and consequently his twelfth 

 edition has been selected as the starting-point of the present system, all 

 previous specific names being under the Stricklandian Code absolutely 

 ignored. Under the auctorum plurimorum system which I have 

 adopted this restriction is no longer necessary, so far as regards specific 

 names. In the selection of generic names I propose to try and follow the 

 Rules where it is possible to discover their meaning. Much ingenuity has 

 been expended in the endeavour to find the type of the restricted genus 

 Strix. Whatever credit is due to Linnaeus for his system of nomenclature, 

 there can be no doubt that his knowledge of birds was very limited, and 

 his attempts at the diagnosis of species in most cases a complete failure. 

 In no group is this more clearly shown than in the Owls. Their synonymy 

 is consequently in the greatest confusion. It seems almost incredible, but 

 there can scarcely be a doubt that Linnaeus was unacquainted with either 

 the Short-eared Owl, the Ural Owl, the Lapp Owl, or Tengmalrn's Owl, 

 all four species more or less common in Sweden. An equally surprising 

 circumstance is the fact that, out of. the twelve Owls which Linnaeus 

 attempted to describe, the identifications of five have been or still are 

 subjects of dispute. As an ornithologist Brisson stands head and shoulders 

 above Linnaeus ; and it was doubtless a consciousness of this superiority 

 that induced Strickland to write the illogical and inconsequent explana- 

 tion to Rule 2, under which Brisson's genera, though dating prior to 1766, 

 are admitted whenever they are additional to those of Linnaeus. Brisson 

 divided the Owls into two genera, making the Wood-0\vl (his Strix strix) 

 the type of Strix, and the Long-eared Owl (his Asia asio) the type of Asia. 

 As, however, I consider these two Owls to be congeneric, I am obliged to 

 regard Brisson's two genera as synonyms of each other ; the alleged 

 additional genus falls to the ground ; and, consequently, by the rules his 

 names are out of court. The first subdivision of the genus Strix was in 

 1767, when Gerini, in his ' Ornithologia Methodice Digesta/ pp. 90, 91, 

 restricted the genus Strix to nine species, placing the Wood-Owl first as 

 Strix aluco. As this species is also the Strix strix of Brisson, the 

 arguments in favour of its being accepted as the type are almost 

 conclusive. 



The Wood- Owls may be distinguished from all other Owls except the 

 Barn-Owls by their large ears, half the size of the head, protected by an 



