470 MR. R. B. SHARPE ON SYRNIUM MAINGAYI. [May 17, 



Prof. Howes then pointed to the interesting fact that the ophthal- 

 mite had assumed more nearly the characters of the antenna than 

 those of the more modified aiitennule, and concluded by saying that 

 while in his opinion the specimen did not finally settle the morpho- 

 logy of the eye-stalk, he had nevertheless brought the drawing 

 forward in the hope that study of it might curb the eagerness with 

 which, in our craving for novelty, we were sometimes too ready to 

 reject the older interpretation. 



A paper was read by Mr. W. F. Kirby, F.E.S., entitled "A 

 Revision of the Subfamily Libellulince, with descriptions of new 

 Genera and Species." 



Mr. Kirby stated that the last compendium of this group had been 

 published by Dr. Brauer in 1868, in which 40 genera were admitted. 

 This number was now raised to 88. All of these were fully charac- 

 terized in the present paper, in which 52 new species were also 

 described. Mr. Kirby likewise gave a short sketch of the 

 characters of the LibelluUncB, and especially of the neuration of this 

 group, which he considered to be of primary importance. 



This paper will be published entire in the Society's ' Trans- 

 actions.' 



The following papers were read : — 



1. Notes on Specimens in the Hume Collection of Birds. 

 — No. 5*. On Syrnium maingayi. By R. Bowdler 

 Sharpe, F.Z.S. 



[Eeceived April 15, 1887.] 



This is a perfectly good species, and was described by Mr. Hume 

 in the sixth volume of 'Stray Feathers' (p. 27). At the time of 

 writing the ' Catalogue of Birds ' I had seen but one specimen, 

 collected by Dr. Maingay, in Lord Tweeddale's Museum, and I 

 came to the conclusion that it was not to be separated from Syrnium 

 indrani of Southern India and Ceylon. Since the advent of the 

 Hume Collection to the British Museum, with its increased series of 

 these Wood-Owls, I have come to the conclusion that the Malaccan 

 species is distinct, and in fact that it is the best characterized of any 

 of the Bulaca group. 



1. Syrnium MAINGAYI. 



Syrnium indrani, pt., Sharpe, Cat. B. ii. p. 282. 



Syrnium maingayi, Hume, Str. F. vi. p. 27 (1878); id. Str. F. 

 1879, p. 46. 



Adult (type of species). General colour above warm chocolate- 

 brown, more or less distinctly barred across with rufous-huff cross 

 markings, predominating on the hind neck and forming a tolerably 

 1 For No. 4. see P. Z. S. 1886, p. 354. 



