NATURE 
241 
THURSDAY, JULY 13, 1899. 
SAUNDERS’S BRITISH BIRDS. 
An TIliustvated Manual of British Birds. By Howard 
Saunders. Second Edition; revised. Pp. xl + 776. 
Figs. and Maps. (London: Gurney and Jackson, 
1897-99.) 
HE demand for works on British birds shows no 
signs of diminution, the popularity of the present 
instructive volume being vouched for by the fact of the 
exhaustion of the first edition of 3000 copies in less than 
eight years from the date of completion. The first 
edition being out of print early in 1897, the publishers lost 
no time in preparing a second, which commenced in 
November of that year and was completed on the first 
of June last. That this new issue is in no sense a mere 
replica of the preceding one is at once shown bya glance 
at the preface, where it is stated that, while the number 
of species admitted as British was then 367, it has now 
been raised to 384. Of course, these additional species 
are merely stragglers ; and it seems to us that, in cases 
like those of the frigate-petrel and the black-browed 
albatross, it would have been decidedly better to include 
such stragglers in a separate list, as they have nothing 
whatever to do with the true British fauna. It must, 
however, be admitted that in making sucha list of foreign 
stragglers it would be exceedingly difficult to know where 
to draw the line, so that we are not going to blame the 
author for the course he has thought fit to pursue. 
The accounts of the various species, although neces- 
sarily somewhat brief, are all that can be desired from 
a popular point of view; and as these accounts are in 
nearly all cases supplemented by an excellent illus- 
tration, it may be safely said that there is no other work 
of its size in which so much information on the subject of 
British birds can be obtained. The great majority of the 
illustrations are the same as those in the fourth edition of 
“Yarrell” ; and although the impressions of many of 
these do not compare favourably when contrasted with 
the latter, yet their attractive character and zoological 
accuracy may well justify their use. New figures, by Mr. 
G, E. Lodge, are, however, given of many of the species 
recently added to the British list, while a considerable 
number of the old-established birds have been redrawn 
by the same talented artist. A special feature of the 
work is the carefully compiled synopsis of genera in the 
introduction, where all the essential diagnostic characters 
of each are given in simple and yet precise terms. 
Another notable feature is afforded by the three ad- 
mirably coloured maps at the end of the volume. The 
first of these shows the comparative elevation of the land 
and the depth of the surrounding seas in the United 
Kingdom, while the second does the same for Europe 
generally. The former, as the author states, serves to 
remind the reader that, owing to the indentations of the 
coast, comparatively few spots in the British Islands are 
situated at a distance of more than fifty miles from the 
coast ; and how important a bearing this has on climate 
—and consequently on bird-life—scarcely needs mention. 
The third map is a North Polar chart, embodying 
NO. 1550, VOL. 60] 
Nansen’s discoveries; and although this is primarily 
intended to assist in estimating the range of Arctic- 
breeding species, it will be found highly useful to many 
others besides ornithologists. 
Fortunately, Mr. Eagle Clarke’s valuable digest on 
bird-migration appeared in time for its results to be in- 
corporated in this volume. And how important are these 
results in regard to the non-continuation of the Heligo- 
land migrations to Britain, and also in respect to the 
effects of wind on migration, needs no telling on this 
occasion. 
With regard to the difficult subject of classification, 
we are glad to find that the author follows the lines of 
the last edition of “ Yarrell,’ so that the number of 
families and genera is considerably less than in certain 
other recent manuals of British birds. We are likewise 
pleased to see the retention of the old ordinal names, 
such as Passeres and Gallinz, instead of their fashionable 
substitutes Passeriformes and Galliformes. So, too, is it 
refreshing to notice the absence of alliterative names ; 
the familiar goldcrest, for instance, appearing as Regulus 
cristatus instead of Regulus regulus. 
At the same time, it is greatly to be deplored that 
ornithologists should not, by a system of give-and-take, 
come to some general agreement over what is really, in 
one sense, an extremely unimportant matter—v.e. the 
names and limits of the orders, families, genera, and 
species of British birds. In the introduction, the author 
observes that the limits of a genus are mainly—and often 
purely—a matter of convenience. With this statement 
we thoroughly agree ; but it is surely a matter of the 
most extreme 7conventence when each and every writer 
on British birds adopts his own views on such limits, 
without any regard to those of his fellow workers. 
Contrast, for instance, Mr. Saunders’s classification of 
the Zurdidae (Thrush family) with the grouping of the 
genera contained therein by Mr. Sharpe in his “ Hand- 
book of British Birds,” as exemplified in the following 
table :— 
SAUNDERS. SHARPE. 
Fam. Turdide. Fam. Regulide. 
Sub-fam. Turdinee. 1. Regulus. 
I. Turdus. Fam. Turdide. 
2. Monticola. 2. Oreocichia. 
3. Saxicola. 3. Geoctchla. 
4. Pratincola. 4. Merula. 
5. Rutecella. 5. Zurdus. 
6. Cyanecula. 6. Dauilias. 
7. Erithacus. 7. Erithacus. 
8. Daulias. 8. Cyanecula. 
Sub-fam. Sylviinz. 9. Monticola. 
9. Sylvia. 10. ARuteczlla. 
10. Regulus. Il, Saxzcola. 
11. Phylloscopus. 12. Pratincola. 
12. Acdon. Fam. Sylviidee. 
13. Lusctniola. 13. Sylvia. 
14. Hypolats. 14. Melizopheluus. 
15. Acrocephalus. 15. Acdon. 
16. Locustella. 16. Phylloscopus. 
Sub-fam. Accentorine, 17. Hypolars. 
17. Accentor. 18. Acrocephalus. 
19. Locustedla. 
Accentoride. 
20. Tharrhaleus. 
21. Accentor. 
Fam. 
Here we have one author making three families out 
of what the other regards as one, while he expands 
M 
