Recent/// published Ornithological Works. 203 



these, a new name f * Acrocephalus orinvs" is proposed for 

 "A. macrorhynchus (Hume)" because there is said to be a 

 Calamoherpe macrorhyncha of v. Miiller (Beitr. Orn. Afr. 

 1853), which is, however, a mere synonym of A. stentureus. 

 Moreover, Hume's species was based, on a single specimen, 

 and, as no other examples of it have yet been obtained 

 (cf. Oates, ' Birds of Brit. India/ i. p. 361), Mr. Oberholser 

 might well have refrained from giving a new name to a very 

 doubtful bird which he has never seen ! 



In new genera our author is quite as prolific as in new 

 subspecies. No less than 10 are proposed : — Tachynautes, 

 Yiridibucco, Odontospiza, Arizelopsar, Poneropsar, Notiocichla, 

 Anteliocichla, Cich/omyia, Arizelomyia, and Helionympha. 

 With regard to these it may be fairly said that most of 

 them rest on very slender characters, and such as in our 

 opinion hardly justify generic separation. Dr. Hartert, 

 who has lately revised the Cypselidse most carefully (Das 

 Tierr., Lief, i.), does not separate " Tachynautes " from 

 Tachornis. The Glossy Starlings of Africa have been 

 " cut up " too much already, and should have the number 

 of their generic terms reduced rather than augmented, and 

 the same may be said of the Muscicapidae. Even Dr. Sharpe, 

 who admits 63 genera of this family, allows Muscicapa 

 ccerulescens to remain in Muscicapa and M. latirostris in 

 Alseonax. But Mr. Oberholser makes them both the types 

 of new genera ! 



Other changes in the names of well-known species are 

 suggested by our author, who, instead of sticking to his text 

 (the Birds of Kilimanjaro), has wandered far away to try to 

 upset the nomenclature of birds which have little or nothing 

 to do with his subject. 



20. Reid on the Oyster-catchers. 



[Sombre el jenero Heematopus. Por Edwin (J. Reid, Director del 

 Mu&eo de Concepcion. Rev. Chilena de Hist. Nat. ix. nos. '2, 3 (190-5).] 



This is a short note on the Oyster-catchers of the Chilian 

 coast by Mr. Reid, who appears to have moved his quarters 

 from Valparaiso to Concepcion. 



