The Zoologist— September, 1867. 919 



change, the older individuals still retaining the bay colour of the 

 breeding-season in places, while birds of the year exhibited a singular 

 mixture of their parent's respective seasonal garbs, the peach-gray 

 feathers appearing on the back and a delicate tinge of buff being visible 

 on the throat." 



This little brochure extends only to twenty-four pages, but it is 

 most welcome as a contribution to ornithological science, and as the 

 production of one bearing so familiar a name. We hope the son may 

 hereafter emulate the father in the extent and accuracy of his 

 researches in this branch of Natural History. 



Edward Newman. 



' Tlie Natural History of the Tineina? Vol. X. containing Gelechia, 

 Part II. By H. T. Stainton, assisted by Professor Zeller, 

 J. W. Douglas and Professor Fret. London : Van Voorst. 



Mr. Stainton still continues this laborious work with conscientious 

 care and undiminished zeal : Vols. IX. and X. each contain figures and 

 life-histories of twenty-four species of Gelechia. The first series of 

 ten volumes of the 'Natural History of the Tineina' is now complete, 

 and two hundred and forty species have been illustrated. Thirteen 

 years have elapsed since the prospectus of the work was issued, and 

 nearly fifteen since the first idea of it was conceived. Mr. Stainton 

 says, " The proposal to publish one or two volumes annually has 

 scarcely been carried out; and many have no doubt been disappointed 

 at the slow progress of the work ; with the exception, however, of 

 the three years 1856, 1863 and 1866 a volume has appeared each 

 year. The mass of unpublished material collected for future volumes 

 is very great, but the difficulty of making up the natural histories of 

 twenty species out of one or two genera increases as the work pro- 

 gresses, and is one great obstacle to the rapid issue of volumes." 

 This I can readily believe; it is a very obvious truism, but why does 

 Mr. Stainton thus bind himself by rules of his own making, or why 

 does he make the rules which entail so great a difficulty ? He appears 

 at last to see the futility of these restrictions, for he goes on to say, 

 " In commencing a second series of ten volumes it may be desirable 

 to modify the scheme in that respect, and to be content with repre- 

 senting on each plate only insects of the same genus, allowing a 

 volume to contain, if convenient, a greater variety." Mr. Stainton 

 concludes his preface by announcing a volume on the ' Tineina of 



