VI PREFACE. 



but a number of necessary alterations have been made,, 

 particularly in the matter of adopting the specific names 

 of first describers as far as possible. An effort has also 

 been made to allow specific rank to valid species only,, 

 while sub-species or races, instead of being nameless, 

 are distinguished by sub-numbers and trinominals after 

 the American style. With the exception of the late 

 Hemy Seebohm, no British ornithologist appears to have 

 openly avowed himself a trinominalist, so that I shall 

 not escape censure for adopting the despised system, 

 yet until some of our ornithologists can suggest some 

 other way of allowing a name to a recognised race with- 

 out giving it the rank of a species, I will adhere to 

 trinominals. 



My thanks are due to various friends who have assisted 

 me with notes and information, much of which, however, 

 I have been unable to make use of in this edition for 

 want of space. I am especially indebted to Dr. John 

 Trumbull, of Malahide, Co. Dublin, for sending me 

 annotated copies of the late A. G. More's " List of Irish 

 Birds" (1890), and Mr. Ussher's ''Report on the Breeding 

 Range of Irish Birds" (1894), the interleaved MS. notes 

 bringing the bibliography down to the present time. I 

 have also obtained much help from Mr. Howard SaundeiV 

 "Manual of British Birds" (1889), Mr. J. E. Harting's 

 "Handbook of British Birds" (1872), Dr. Sharpe's 

 "Handbook to the Birds of Great Britain" (1894 6), 

 Mr. Dresser's "Birds of Europe" (1871 81), Seebohm's 

 "British Birds" (18835), Prof. Collett's "Bird Life in 

 Arctic Norway" (1894), the 4th edition of Yarrell, and 

 the 2nd edition of the A. O. U. Check-list of North 

 American Birds, also the "'Zoologist," "Ibis," "Field," etc. 



H. K. S. 



London, June 6th, 1896. 



