in 1898, but it was not published until 1S99 : the title of “ Soft-food Eaters ”

is a modest one, for it practically includes all cage-birds not already treated

of in his works on the Parrots and Finches : indeed part of the work on

Finches—the Tanagers—is more thoroughly dealt with in this later work.

The German title of this—the fourth illustrated volume of the “ Fremd-

landisclien Stubenvogel ”—is “ Die fremdlandischeu Weiclifutterfresser ”

(Insekten-oder Kerbthierfresser, auch Wurmvogel genanut, Frucht-oder

Berenfresser und Fleisclifresser), mit Anliang Tauben und Hiihnervogel,”

with ten chromo-lithographic plates.


In his Introduction Dr. Russ commences with the following remark :

“ With this Volume II. the entire great work ‘The Foreign Cage-birds ’ in

four volumes, the principal work of my life, is completed.” Strange, that

the author should live so short a time after its completion ! Yet, how

many of us at the end of our span will be able to rejoice that we have

successfully finished all that we hoped to do ? A. G. Butler.



INTFRNATIONAF CONGRESS OF ORNITHOLOGY.


Sir, —It may be of interest to members to know that at the Inter¬

national Congress of Ornithology, to be held in Paris, on the 26th-3oth

June in this year, a portion of Section IV. will be devoted to aviculture.


An y one may attend the Congress by sending their names and a

subscription of 20 frs. (16s.) to M. J. de Claybrooke, 5, Rue de Soutay, Paris,

before the opening day. J. L. Bonhote.



THE RFD-FACFD FINCH.


Sir, —The bird sent by me to the recent Balliam Show as a Red-faced

Finch appears to have attracted much attention. I11 every report the name

has been questioned ; one reporter going so far as to say, “described as a

Red-faced Finch, but certainly not so.” I have always taken it to be a

specimen of the Red-faced Finch, Pytelia afra, which is, of course, quite

distinct from the other Red-faced Finch, Pytelia melba.


As pointed out in the Magazine last August, there is some confusion

between the two species, owing, no doubt, to the great rarity of both. Verv

marked differences, however, exist between them. For instance, the red

on the face differs in position, extending farther downwards in melba, and

much farther backwards in afra ; the under-tail coverts of melba are quite

white, while in afra they are striped ; then the general appearance of melba

is much brighter, and the transverse markings on the breast are much

more clearly defined than they are with afra.


The bird in question is the hen of a pair received nearly two years

ago. At that time they answered to the description of Pytelia afra in Dr.

Butler’s “ Foreign Finches.” The male, however, had not obtained its full

red face, only a few spots being visible. When moulting, several feathers

in the wings and tails of both birds were replaced by others, white and

yellow in colour, and the surviving hen has also recently grown whitish

feathers on the head—hence the peculiar appearance which has made it a

puzzle. A pair of Pytelia melba, living under the same conditions, moulted

true to their original colour.



