February, 1882.] 



AND OOLOGIST. 



93 



names to suit the learned doctors' ideas of 

 what should be, it would hardly be worth 

 the paper it is printed on. But it is more 

 than this — as a check-list it is simply perfect. 

 First, the scientific name is given in " caps 

 and lower case," which will prevent the er- 

 rors continually made by using capitals 

 where they should not be. The choice of 

 type is excellent. Half of each page is devo- 

 ted to the check-list proper. The lower 

 half contains the numbers and name in dup- 

 licate. The origin and history of each 

 name is given in full. The numbers of all 

 previous recognized lists are given: Baird, 

 1859; Coues, 1874; Ridgway, iSSr ; so 

 that " the Coues Check-list " can be used as 

 readily as the official list. It will have an 

 extensive circulation, but it will be unfor- 

 tunate if a portion of our collectors should 

 recognize its r umbers, as it will create con- 

 fusion in every transfer, unless specimens 

 are doubly numbered- 



Our Contributors 



whose articles have not yet appeared will 

 please bear vvitli us a while as we shall try 

 to get out two numbers per month until our 

 surplus matter has been reduced. 



Life histories of our bird- are thankfully 

 received; also newsy items on ornithology 

 which every observer can furnish. Make 

 free use of postal cards for short items. 



"Fork-tailed Flycatcher. 



CORRECTION. 



To-day, December 2oih, I received the 

 proof-sheet of my paper en the Fork-tailed, 

 or Scissor-tailed, Flycatcher [M i/ruliis for- 

 Jicaius), but as I notice a mistake, I will 

 write you at once. The engraving figures 

 the true Fork-tailed Flycatcher ( J/, tyran- 

 fius), of Mexico to South America, and 

 which is only an accidental straggler to our 

 territory. The bird I described is here 

 commonly called the Fork-tailed Fly- 

 catcher, or "Fork tail," and "Texan Bird of 

 Paradise ;" in books the name Scissor-tail and 

 Swallow-tailed Flycatcher is to be found. 

 A very good engraving of our bird, the Scis- 



sor-tail as I now will call him, may be 

 found in "Baird, Brewer and Ridgway's 

 North American Birds," Vol II., page 311. 

 The bird figured I have never seen here. — 

 If. Nehrliiig^ Fedor, Texas. 



"I have been collecting , either personally 

 or through others, on the lower Rio Grande 

 through the region of Texas,between Mexico 

 and the locality mentioned, ever since the 

 winter of 1S77, and not one of us have ever 

 -caught a glimpse of the bird, although it was 

 one of the prominent looked-for species 

 liable to occur on our lists and always 

 sought after. Now the Scissor-tail [M.for- 

 Jicatiis) was common everywhere and is the 

 " Bird of Paradise " of the inhabitants of 

 the country. In fact not one word of the 

 whole article but would apply most fitly to 

 the Scissor-tail. I must say I am extremely 

 skeptical ab;>ut the Fork-tail, so nicely rep- 

 resented in the cut in O. and O., being act- 

 ually taken within our borders." — Geo. B. 

 Sennett, Meadville, Fa. 



Permit me to call attention to an error in 

 the last number of the " Ornithologist and 

 Oologist," viz : the presentation of a figure 

 ot Milvulus tyrannus (Fork-tailed Fly- 

 catcher) with the article on M. forficatus, 

 wh ch should be called Scissor or Svvallow- 

 tailed Flycatcher. The two birds are ex- 

 ceedingly distinct. The Fork-tailed ¥\y- 

 Q.^.X.<:\\^xiM. tyrannus), does not, so far as 

 we know, occur in Texas, or even in 

 Mexico, ( ! ) though it has been reported as 

 occurring accidentally in Mississippi and 

 New Jersey. The Swallow tailed ' Fly- 

 catcher ( M. forficatus), on the other hand, 

 is very common in Texas. — R. Ridgivay., 

 Washington., D. C. 



In the January number of your publica- 

 tion I notice an article by H. Nehrling on 

 the " Fork-tailed Flycatcher, Milvulus ty- 

 rannus (Linn) " Now the Milvulus tyran- 

 tius so far as known is an extralifnital siiecies, 

 whose claim to a place on our check-lists 

 rests solely on the occurrence of one or two 

 stragglers within our limits If then I am 

 right in the inference that Nehrling is writ- 



