z^u 



THE ZOOLOGIST. 



THIRD SERIES. 



Vol. VIII.] JUNE, 1884. [No. 90. 



THREE UNPUBLISHED PAPERS ON ORNITHOLOGY. 

 By the late Edward Blyth. 



[A CEiTic, who has been a diligent student of Blyth's volu- 

 minous contributions to zoological literature, has described him 

 as " one of the greatest zoologists who has lived since the time 

 of Cuvier." 



Certainly, if we pass over his knowledge of anatomy, which 

 was not profound, it must be admitted that the fund of general 

 knowledge which he possessed on the habits, classification, and 

 geographical distribution of the Vertebrata (chiefly perhaps the 

 Mammalia and Aves) was very remarkable. It appeared all the 

 more so from his wonderfully retentive memory, which enabled him 

 without hesitation, in reply to enquiries, to give valuable informa- 

 tion on the subject under discussion either from his own obser- 

 vation, or from what he had read and remembered. Some idea 

 of the extent and variety of the knowledge which he possessed 

 may be formed by perusing the list of his published papers given 

 by Mr. Grote in the excellent memoir which precedes Blyth's post- 

 humous Catalogue of the Mammals and Birds of Burma (1875). 



In this list are not to be found the three papers which we 

 have now the pleasure of bringing to the notice of our readers. 

 It is a little curious that they have not already been made public ; 

 for they were separately printed in pamphlet form by the author 

 for private distribution, and to elicit friendly criticism and help 

 in the preparation of a general work on the birds of India. 



On a printed slip attached to one of these essays, that on the 

 Certhiidce or Creepers, we find the author's views thus expressed : — 



ZOOLOGIST. — JUNE, 1884. B 



