306 Zoological N. Y. Zoological Society. [I; 17 



is true of so many groups that with the removal of 7'eevesi and 

 soemmerringii from Phasianus it holds good throughout the 

 pheasants. And now in considering the status of the euplo- 

 camine pheasants, we are able, by applying it, to make our divi- 

 sion rest on something beside wholly tentative and altogether 

 artificial separations. 



For in this case we are dealing with generic relationships 

 of so subtle and complex a nature that a satisfactory decision 

 on mere color and pattern and crest characters seems impossible. 

 By invoking unlimited additional taxonomic castes or by employ- 

 ing a classification imagined in the three planes of space, the 

 whole matter is at once simplified. For example, few would 

 object to this scheme: 



Subfamily Phasianinae. 

 Supergenus Euplocamus. 

 Genus Gennaeus. 

 Subgenus Hierophasis. 



Then again an additional division, called perhaps Section, 

 should be instituted to include the Fire-backed Pheasants, 

 Diardigallus, Lophura and Acomus, occupying a distinct niche 

 between the subfamily and supergenus. And so on. 



The fineness of the distinction is well shown by the follow- 

 ing groupings : 

 Classification by 



T^. , , ( Gennaeus 4- Hierophasis 

 Fiery back -^ 



\^ Diardigallus -f Lophura -j- Acomus 



^ , C Gennaeus -j- Hierophasis + Diardigallus 



" , . < + Lophura 



of rectrices j . i ^ 



(^ Acomus 



Color of facial ( Gennaeus + Hierophasis + Diardigallus 

 wattles I Lophura + Acomus 



Taking into consideration the distributional factor, we find 

 (as in the utilization of the tail-moult character) that one of 



