250 mr. a. a. garrod on the [May 5, 



16 rectrices, and does not refer to any other numbers. Different 

 authors have recorded the number of tail-feathers in some of the 

 genera. Twelve, fourteen, sixteen, and twenty are the numbers which 

 I have been able to find in the different species which I have been 

 able to examine, though in Calcenas one specimen had only ten rec- 

 trices in the perfect tail, whilst most have twelve. Inspection of the 

 following list will show that in some of the genera there are peculi- 

 arities in the number of the tail-feathers which indicate difference of 

 more than specific importance ; for instance, in Carpophaga fourteen 

 is the typical number of the rectrices, but C. novce-zealandice differs 

 from all its congeners in possessing only twelve : — 



~r « , . Number of 



Name of genus and species. rectrices. 



Calcenas nicobarica 12 



Chalcopelia puella 12 



Chalcophaps chrysochlora 12 



Chamcepelia talpacoti 12 



Columba (all the species examined) 12 



Ectopistes migratorius 12 



Leptoptila crumenifera 12 



Lopholcemus antarcticus 12 



Macropijgia phasianella 12 



Metriopelia melanoptera 12 



Starnoenas cyanocephala 12 



Turtur (all the species examined) 12 



Tympanistria bicolor 12 



Zenaida martinicana 12 



Carpophaga (all species examined* except C. novce- 

 zealandice) 14 



Didunculus strigirostris 14 



Geopelia (all species examined) 14 



Leucosarcia picta 14 



Ocyphaps lophotes 14 



Phlogcenas cruentata 14 



crinigera 14 



Ptilonopus (all species examined except one spe- 

 cimen in Brit. Mus., marked P. occipitalis $ , 



with 16) 14 



Treron (all species examined) 14 



Zenaidura marginata 14 



Goura coronata 16 



victories 16 



Phaps chalcoptera 16 



Pterocles alchata 16 



arenarius 16 



Otidiphaps nobilis 20 



It will be observed, as has been remarked by Prof. Baird, that, 

 with the exception of Zenaidura, all the North American Columba 

 possess 12 rectrices. 



* Including C. spilorrhoa, of which I have examined several examples. 



