January 24, 1919] 



SCIENCE 



93 



least were found partly buried in loose soil. 

 One, weighing GJ pounds, was found about six 

 inches in sandy soil where it had fallen and 

 broken into several pieces as it struck. Some 

 pieces show secondary fusion surfaces, and 

 some appear to show tertiary fusion surfaces. 

 The stone is brittle and most of the pieces are 

 broken ; however, one fine boloid of twenty 

 IX)unds has been foimd and several of about 

 ten pounds weight. 



The writer is preparing a detailed descrip- 

 tion of the meteorite and the phenomena of its 

 fall and would appreciate any data that may 

 have been gathered by other observers or 

 collectors. 



Terexce T. QumKE 



Depaktmext of Geology and Minekalogy, 

 u.vrveesitt of minnesota, 

 Minneapolis, Minn. 



SCIENTIFIC BOOKS 



Catalogue of Birds of the Americas. By 

 Charles B. Cory. Part 11. No. 1. Pub- 

 lication 197, Field Museum of Natural 

 History; Zoological Series, Vol. XIII. 

 March, 1918. Pp. 1-315; pi. I. 

 This catalogue intends to treat all the spe- 

 cies and subspecies of birds known to occur in 

 North America, Middle America, West Indies, 

 and South America, including all the ad- 

 jacent islands of the Atlantic and Pacific 

 oceans. Although the present installment is 

 first in the order of publication, it is called 

 Part II, No. 1, since it begins with the owls 

 instead of with the lowest forms. This seems 

 rather unfortimate, but the author explains 

 it on the ground that Mr. Robert Ridgway's 

 great work on the birds of North and Middle 

 America is not yet finished as far as the 

 lower groups; and that more time than is now 

 available will be necessary in order to work 

 out the status of many of the water birds of 

 South America. 



The classification adopted for this catalogue 

 is practically that of Dr. R. B. Sharpe, as 

 used in his " Hand-List of the Genera and 

 Species of Birds." The outline of this classi- 

 fication down to families, in so far as it affects 



the birds of the Americas, is included in the 

 introductory matter. The present part com- 

 prises 1,265 species and subspecies, represent- 

 ing 233 genera of the following families: 

 Bubonidae, Tytonidae, Psittacidae, Steator- 

 nithidae, Alcedinidse, Todida;, Momotidse, 

 Nyctibiidffi, Caprimulgidse, '" Cypselidae " (lege 

 Micropodida?) and Trochilidfe. 



Of the higher groups nothing but the names 

 is given, but for each genus there are added 

 the authority, the original reference, and a 

 citation of the type. For each species and 

 subsjjecies there appear the full technical com- 

 bination ; the common name ; reference to the 

 original description ; the tyi)e locality ; such 

 essential synonymy as references (usually 

 not over half a dozen) to ^Lr. Ridgway's 

 " Birds of North and Middle America," " The 

 Catalogue of Birds of the British Museum," 

 original descriptions, revisions of groups, and 

 other important papers; a brief statement of 

 geographic range; and a list of specimens 

 (with state or country localities) contained 

 in the Field Museum of Natural History. 

 An asterisk (*) indicates species represented 

 in this collection, and a dagger (t) those of 

 which there are specimens for exchange. 



For all species and subspecies not included 

 in Ridgway's " Birds of North and Middle 

 America" or " The Catalogue of the Birds in 

 the British Museum," brief descriptions are 

 added in footnotes, along with various com- 

 ments on nomenclature and the status of 

 forms. The following subspecies are described 

 as new: Speoiyto cunicidaria minor, from Boa 

 Vista, Rio Branco, Brazil; Aratinga cactorum 

 perpallida, from Jua, near Iguatu, Brazil; 

 Eupsittula pertinax margaritensis, from Mar- 

 garita Island, Venezuela; Artiazona amazonica 

 tohagensis, from Tobago Island, West Indies; 

 Urospatha martii oUvacea, from Moyobamba, 

 Peru; Xephoecetes niger gii.adeloxtpen.<sis. from 

 Guadeloupe Island, West Indies; Lepidopyga 

 goudoti zuliae, from Rio Aurare, Venezuela; 

 and Colibri iolatus irevipennis, from Caracas, 

 Venezuela. 



We are glad to see that in headings the full 

 technical name of each species and subsijecie.' 

 is written without abbreviation; also that the 



