482 . MR. D. G. ELLIOT ON THE IBIDIN^. [June 5, 



writers have preferred to employ them as subgeneric divisions, while 

 others, ignoring them entirely, have placed all the birds in this 

 subfamily under one genus. Ibis. From a careful examination of 

 the subject it appears to me that either the latter view must be 

 adopted, and but one genus recognized, or else quite a number must 

 be employed, as the species certainly vary greatly among themselves, 

 and by such characters as are usually deemed generic. Considering 

 that more than one generic form is clearly to be perceived among 

 these birds, I have referred the different species to those in which 

 it seemed they should properly be retained. Some authors have 

 taken the genus Ibis, as defined by Moehring, with Tantalus ruber, 

 Linn., as the type. Moehring, however, does not come within the 

 number of those writers who are accepted as authorities either for 

 genera or species ; and therefore Ibis, as referred by him, cannot in 

 any way be taken into consideration. Lacepede was the first to 

 define the genus Ibis after the time of Linnaeus (the starting-point 

 of ornithological nomenclature) ; but he unfortunately did not desig- 

 nate any type for his genus ; so it cannot be accepted. The next 

 author who proposed a generic division for these birds was Bechstein, 

 who, in 1803, gave the term Falcinellus to the Tantalus falcinellus of 

 Linnaeus ; and in 1810 Savigny defined the genus Ibis with Tantalus 

 athiopicits, Lath., the sacred Ibis of the ancients, as his type. It will 

 thus be seen that Ibis cannot in any way be used for the American 

 species of this subfamily, as has been generally the practice. 



In the following enumeration of the terms that have been pro- 

 posed, I commence with Bechstein, and bring the list down to the pre- 

 sent day, giving with each genus the species employed as its type : — 



(1803) Falcinellus, Bechet., Gem. Nat. (uec Type. 



Vieill.) Tantalus falcinellus, Linu. 



(1810) Bfis, Savigny, Systems des Oiseaux de 



I'Egypte et de la Syrie, p. 392 Tantalus (Bthiopicus, Lath. 



(1832) ?'ot(?'«//A"s, Wagler, Isis (nee Eeich.) ... Tantalus falciiicltus, Jjinn. 



(1832) Theristicus, Wiigh ihid ScoIojmx can datics, Bodd. 



(1832) Geronticus, Wagl. ibid Tantalus calvus, Bodd. 



(1832) Harpipr ion, Wngl. ihid ,. Tantaluscayennensis,Gnxie\.. 



( 1 832 ) Eudocimus, Wagl . ibid Tan talus ruber, Linn. 



(1832) Cercihis, Wngl. ihid Ibis o.rt/cerca, Spix. 



(1832) Ptiimosus, Wagl. ibid Ibis infuscata, Licht. 



(1842) Threskiornis, G. E. Gray, App. List Gen. 



Birds, p. 13 Tantalus atkiopicus, Jjath. 



(1851) Comatibis, Eeichenb. Novitiifi, Synop. 



Avium, pi. 291. figs. 2383, 2384 Uns comata, Eiipp. 



(1851) Nipfonia, Eeichb. ibid. pi. 141. fig. 538 Ibis nippon, Temm. 

 (1851) Molybdojjhanes, Eeiclib. ibid. pi. 139 



fig. 524 , Ibis ccsriilescens, Vieill. 



(1851) Lophotihis, Eeichb. ibid. pi. 83. fig. 637 Tantalus cristatus, Bodd. 



(1851) Inocotis, Eeichb. ibid. pi. 140. fig. 533 ... Ibis ]}apillosa, Temm. 

 (1851) Carphibis, Eeichb. ibid. pi. 82. figs. 1009, 



1010 Ibis spinicollis, Ja,uies. 



(1851) Gnara, Eeichb. ibid. pi. 139. figs. 525-527 Tantalus ruber, Linn. 

 (1851) Lcucibis, Eeichb. ibid. pi. 141. fig. 526, 



pi. 361. figs. 2825, 2826, pi. 292. fig. 2385 Tantalus albus, Linn. 



(1851) Bostryctiia, Eeichb. ibid.pl. 83. fig. 1011 Tds carunculata, Eiipp. 



(1857) Hagedasliia, Bon. Oonsp. Gen. Av Tantalus hagcdash, Lath. 



