462 Mr. J. H. Gurney’s Notes on 
XLVII.—WNotes on a ‘ Catalogue of Accipitres in the British 
Museum’ by R. Bowdler Sharpe (1874). By J. H. 
GURNEY. 
(Continued from p. 329.) 
Mr. Sarre has united the genera Baza and Avicida under 
the former title; and it seems to me that the distinction be- 
tween these two genera is sufficiently slight to make their 
fusion permissible, though it should be mentioned that Mr. 
Ridgway has expressed a contrary opinion in his ‘ Studies of 
Falconide,’ p. 153; but, agreeing in this respect with Mr. 
Sharpe, I differ from the course which he has adopted im in- 
cluding the genus Baza amongst his ‘‘ subfamily Falconide.” 
In common with several previous writers, I look upon Baza 
as belonging to the group Pernes, and as constituting the 
concluding genus of the very extensive Milvine subfamily to 
which this group is, in my view, attached. In connexion 
with this subject, I may quote the following remarks on the 
osteology of Baza madagascariensis from the important work 
of MM. Milne-Edwards and Grandidier on the birds of Ma- 
dagascar, vol. i. p. 75 :—‘‘ Cette étude détaillée des carac- 
teres ostéologiques du Baza madagascariensis montre que cet 
oiseau différe trop complétement des Faucons pour pouvoir 
prendre place dans la méme famille, qu’il ressemble bien plus 
aux Milans et aux Boudrées, et que si la forme de sa téte 
osseuse et de son appareil sternal n’était pas toute spéciale, 
on pourrait le considerer comme appartenant au genre 
Pernis.” 
The genus Baza seems to me to assort itself into four 
natural subdivisions :—the first consisting of B. cuculoides and 
B. verreauxi; the second of B. madagascariensis ; the third 
of B. subcristata, B. reinwardti, B. rufa, B. erythrothoraz, B. 
magnirostris, B. ceylonensis, and B. sumatrensis; the fourth 
of B. lophotes, which, it may be mentioned, is the type of 
the genus. 
