Letters, Extracts, and Notes. 397 



to refer to the traveller's ' Winter with the Birds in Costa 

 Rica.' Suffice it to say that he traversed the country from 

 ocean to ocean, and from the sea-level to the summit of Irazu 

 (11,500 feet alt.), while he gives a most favourable account 

 of it. Many rare birds, such as Pteroglossus frantzi, Arinia 

 boucardi, Microchera parvirostris, Carpodectes antonice, 

 and Cephalopterus glabricollis, were observed iu their native 

 wilds, and of most of them fine series were obtained. A nest 

 of the wonderful Trogon Pharomacrus mocinno was found, 

 and a fully fledged young bird was taken alive ! 



The Structure of the Ratitce. — A very nicely prepared 

 table-case, the work of Mr. W. P. Pycraft, F.Z.S., has been 

 lately added to the Bird-Gallery of the Natural History 

 Museum. It is designed to point out the most salient 

 characters of the Order " Ratitse " which distinguish them 

 from the rest of the Class " Aves." The skull, the sternum, 

 the shoulder-girdle, the pelvis, the sacrum, the feathers, 

 and the wings of the various forms are illustrated by a 

 series of carefully mounted specimens, which serve to shew 

 their differences from all other birds and their distinctions 

 inter se. 



The inclusion of the Tinamous in the Ratite group 

 will doubtless give rise to some criticism, but the structure 

 of the palate and other characters seem to give much support 

 to this position. 



But besides its systematic purpose, this case may be 

 regarded as forming a very valuable lesson in degeneration 

 and in the evolution of flightless birds. Nowhere else, so 

 far as we know, is there to be found a similar collection 

 of preparations of the wings and sterna of the Ratitse. 

 Similarly prepared cases for the other Orders of Birds would 

 be very useful, and we are sure that they would be much 

 appreciated. 



The Wild Sivan of Seistan. — In the ( Journal of the 

 Bombay Natural History Society' (vol. xvi. no. 4, 1905) 

 will be found " A List of the Birds shot or seen in Seistan by 



