416 



SCIEJSrCE. 



[Vol. IX., No. 221 



long series, amounting to fifty or more in some 

 cases, of skulls of sticli forms as our western 

 meadow-lark (S. M. negleata), or onr red-winged 

 and yellow-headed blackbirds (A. phoenicens and 

 X. xanthocephakTs). It will be impossible to detail 

 here the differences which are to be found in these 

 highly instructive series, as they occur for the sev- 

 eral respective species mentioned ; but I herewith 

 present drawings which I have made (X 2) of two 

 skulls chosen from a series of skulls of our yellow- 

 headed blackbird (X. xanthocephalus) to illustrate 

 the point under consideration. One of these I col- 

 lected at Fort Wingate here, last July (1886), and 

 the other in Wyoming in 1879. The former is the 

 upper figure, and the lower the latter ; and a glance 

 at them will be sufficient to convince lis of the ex- 

 traordinary differences that obtain between them, 

 both as regards measurements and the general form 

 of their several parts. Similar differences are to be 

 found in the other species alluded to above : indeed, 

 they hold good for the skeletons throughout the 

 vertebrate series. No less marked variations are to 

 be found, when we come to examine sufficient ma- 

 terial, in the sternum of the same species of birds. 

 I have already pointed this out for the American 

 vultures in my ' Contributions to the anatomy of 

 birds,' published several years ago, and extracted 

 from Hayden's ' Twelfth annual ' (p. 771), wherein 

 we find some striking differences in this bone, more 

 especially in its xiphoidal extremity. My collection 

 also affords examples of similar variations in the 

 pelves of birds of the same species ; and I have two 

 pelves before me of X. xanthocephalus, wherein 

 in one the ilia meet on either side for a considerable 

 distance the neural crista of the dorso-lumbar ver- 

 tebrae, while in the other the reverse condition ob- 

 tains, and they are separated from that median 

 plate of bone, on either side, by a very decided 

 interval. But space here will not admit of further 

 citing interesting examples of these variations ; nor is 

 it necessary, for, in the light of those already pre- 

 sented, the entire ground may be covered by saying 

 that in all forms, both vertebrate and invertebrate, 

 paleontological and otherwise, when we come to 

 compare sufficiently extensive series represented by 

 individuals of the same species, we will find in 

 similar structures marked variations both as regards 

 relative size and form as we pass from one specimen 

 to another, and if extremes be chosen the differences 

 will be found to be in many cases of a very striking 

 nature. E. W. Shufeldt. 



Fort Wingate, N. Mex., April 15. 



International congress of geologists. — American 

 committee meeting at Albany. 



At a meeting of the American committee (elected 

 by the standing committee of the American associa- 

 tion for the advancement of science to represent 

 American geology in the International congress of 

 geologists) held in Albany on April 6, there were 

 present Prof. James Hall (president). Professors 

 Hitchcock, Stevenson, Williams, Winchell, Cook, 

 Cope, P"d Frazer (secretary). Professors Emerson, 

 Smock, and Clarke, Dr. Rominger, and Mr. Beecher 

 were invited to be present at the sessions of the 

 committee. By unanimous vote, Mr. W. J. McGee 

 was invited to take the place, during the meeting, of 

 Major Powell, who was prevented by sickness from 

 attending. 



The secretary announced that there had been 

 forty-five subscribers for fifty copies of the geological 

 map of Europe. 



A motion was adopted, abolishing the committee 

 of the whole and its officers, and intrusting the duty 

 of preparing reports on the separate divisions of the 

 geological column to eight ' reporters,' who were 

 thereupon unanimously elected (see circular letter 

 to geologists, below). 



The following was adopted by the committee : — 



Resolved, that we recommend to American geol- 

 ogists the acceptance of the conclusions of the Inter- 

 national congress ; said changes to be formulated at 

 a subsequent meeting of the committee; and it being 

 understood that the committee will present such ad- 

 ditions as are deemed necessary by American geol- 

 ogists, to the Congress of London in 1888. 



Peesipor Frazer, Secretary. 

 Philadelphia, April 23. 



[To all American geologists.] 



At the recent meeting of the American committee 

 in Albany, ' reporters ' were elected whose duty is to 

 prepare reports on the several parts into which, for 

 convenience, the geological column has been divided. 

 The assignment is as follows : — 



Quaternary, recent, and archeology, Major Powell,, 

 director U. S. geological survey, Washington, 

 D.C. 

 Cainozoic (marine), Prof. E. A. Smith, state geol- 

 ogist, University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa county, 

 Ala. 

 Cainozoic (interior). Prof. E. D. Cope, 2102 Pine 



Street, Philadelphia, Penn. 

 Mesozoic, Prof. G. H. Cook, state geologist, Rut- 

 gers college. New Brunswick, N.J. 

 Upper paleozoic (carbonic). Prof. J. J. Stevenson,. 



University of the city of New York. 

 Upper paleozoic (Devonic), Prof. H. S. Williams, 



Cornell university, Ithaca, N.Y. 

 Lower paleozoic, Prof. N. H. Winchell, state 

 geologist, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, 

 Minn. 

 Archaean, Dr. Persifor Frazer, 201 South 5tb 



Street, Philadelphia, Penn. 

 It is the duty of these reporters to obtain as com- 

 plete information as possible, each for his own sub- 

 ject, from American geologists interested in it ; but,, 

 on account of the difficulty of ascertaining the names 

 of all who have information to impart on a particular 

 topic, it will not be possible to address letters to more 

 than a few of those who are known to have studied 

 a subject. For this reason each of the undersigned 

 appeals to all his professional brethren for aid in- 

 preparing the report which is intrusted to him. It 

 is not possible that any single scheme will be 

 approved by all geologists, and therefore it is the 

 more necessary that there should be a fair statement 

 of any opposing views in each report. These reports 

 will be submitted to criticism and discussion at the 

 next meeting of the American committee, to be held' 

 probably next August ; and an effort is being made 

 to have them discussed formally in Section E at the 

 meeting of the American association for the advance- 

 ment of science, to be held afterwards. With such ad- 

 vantages for knowing the views of our countrymen, 

 there seems every prospect that the American repre- 

 sentation at the next congress will exercise an in- 

 fluence proportional to the importance of its constit- 

 uency. 



