BihliograjpMcal Notices. 393 



book of reference on British birds, alike on the book-shelf of the 

 student and in the library of the country gentleman, for many years 

 to come. 



Russian Central Asia. By Henry Lansdell, D.D. In two volumes. 

 8vo. London, 1885. 



Zoologists will experience much satisfaction in finding in a work, 

 the author of which does not claim to be a naturalist, unexpectedly 

 a source of information which is all the more welcome as it refers to 

 a part of the globe that claims our attention in an unusual degree. 

 We sadly missed in Dr. Lansdell's first work, ' Through Siberia,' 

 information as to the natural productions of that remote region, 

 and could not help feeling that an opportunity had been lost. This 

 is in some measure remedied in this new work on Kussian Central 

 Asia. It forms two large volumes, handsomely illustrated with 

 seventy engravings and maps. 



The bulk of the work is occupied by the author's record of his 

 journey of 12,000 miles through Western Siberia to Kuldja, thence 

 through the Kirghese steppes to Tashkend, Ehokand, and Samar- 

 kand. Crossing into Bokhara he travelled to the Oxus, down which 

 he floated 300 miles to Khiva, and then continued by a new route 

 across the land of the Turkomans and north of Merv to Krasnovotsk. 

 As province by province of Russian Central Asia are described, their 

 several faunas and floras are shortly characterized ; but the most 

 important part of the information is contained in the appendices at 

 the end of the second volume, which extend to about 150 pages of 

 closely but clearly printed matter. 



Concerning the fanna of Eussian Turkestan Dr. Lansdell, after 

 pointing out that until within the last thirty years Turkestan was 

 all but unknown to science, gives a brief account of the various 

 naturalists who have proceeded there — amongst whom the first 

 place is very properly given to Professor A. P. Pedchenko, whose 

 work, written in Russian, is unfortunately a closed book to the 

 majority of English naturalists. 



Thanks to help which Dr. Lansdell has received, the introductions 

 to the various portions of Pedchenko's collection are translated and 

 supplemented by lists of the species, so that the English reader may 

 obtain a good idea of the fauna and flora of the region traversed. 

 Severtzoff's lists of mammals and birds had already been translated, 

 and to these Dr. Lansdell adds those of reptiles and amphibians, 

 giving here, as also with the mammals and birds, both the vertical 

 and horizontal distribution. 



We have next the monograph on Turkestan fishes by K. P. 

 Kessler. In the account of the Mollusks the area is extended 

 beyond Turkestan to the Altai, the Trans-Baikal, Afghanistan, Tibet, 

 Cashmir, North-west Himalayas, and Tun-nan. Pive pages are 

 devoted to Arachnida, with 146 species, after which follow the Crus- 

 taceans and Coleoptera. At the end of this last order Dr. Lansdell 



