722 Recently published Ornithological Works. 



Liberia by Mr. J. Maitland Pye-Smith on the 27th of 

 March, 1905. This appears to be the first record of the 

 occurrence of this far-wandering species so far south in 

 Africa*, though it is a recognised winter-visitor to Chili, 

 India, and New Zealand. 



120. Jourdain on the l^gys of European Birds. 



[The Eggs of European Birds. By the Rev. Francis C. B. Jourdain. 

 London: B. H. Porter. Part I. 8vo. Pp. i-iv, 1-80; pis. i.-xiv. 

 Price 10s. Qd. net.] 



The first part of Mr. Jourdain's book makes a further 

 addition to the works on Oology now in progress. The 

 letterpress is excellent, and gives a fully detailed account of 

 the nest and eggs of each form, with references to plates 

 already published — and besides, what is even more important 

 nowadays, a sketch of the breeding-range of the different 

 races that have been hitherto described. We may prefer 

 the 12th edition of Linnseus's ' Systema Naturae ' to the 

 10th, and may not be inclined to follow the author closely 

 as regards nomenclature, but there can be only one opinion 

 as to the necessity of an exact knowledge of the various 

 geographical races ; and should their nests and eggs prove 

 to differ, this should assuredly be made known. Moreover, 

 any such differences as exist should be reckoned at their full 

 worth in deciding the difficult question of the validity of the 

 various races. 



In his nomenclature the author would have done well to 

 be more consistent. In some cases he heads the account 

 relating to a bird with a binomial appellation, and then 

 subdivides the species into geographical races by the use of 

 trinomials. This, we hold, is the correct method, and is that 

 commonly used in allied branches of science. To apply tri- 

 nomials to all these races without a general binomial heading 

 is, in our opinion, equivalent to destroying the species 

 entirely, or, in other words, to dividing the genus directly 



* It has occurred occasionally near Tangier, in N.E. Africa (see 

 Trby, Orn. Straits of Gibraltar, 2nd ed. p. 275). 



