No. 1.] THE AUSTRAL AVIAN RECORD 5 



exception, and then oftimes subdivide a large subgenus 

 into races for which he rarely proposed Latin names, 

 though occasionally quoting the Latin names which 

 other authors had introduced as genera, which genera 

 he had degraded to races. 



The first introduction of Chalcites, in a generic sense, 

 I can trace is that by Swainson (Classif. Birds, Vol. 

 II., p. 322, 1837) when two species only are named — 

 G. auratus and vaillantii. As the latter at this time was 

 a nude name only, the type of Chalcites by monotypy 

 must be C . auratus, which is a synonym of C. cupreus 

 Boddaert. Therefore Chalcites Swainson, 1837, becomes 

 an absolute synonym of Lampromorpha Vigors, 1831, 

 which is the next name to be considered. 



Lampromorpha was introduced by Vigors (Proc. 

 Zool. Soc. [Lond.], 1831, p. 92) in connection with 

 the new species Lampromorpha chalcopepla. Inasmuch as 

 this is the only species named, it must be accepted, by 

 monotypy, as the type of the genus Lampromorpha. A 

 footnote at the place quoted reads : " A group including 

 the Shining Cuckoos of Africa, India, and New Holland, 

 indicated in the Transactions of the Linnean Society, 

 Vol. XV., p. 300, Mr. Vigors expressed his belief of having 

 lately seen a name attached to this group by some modern 

 author ; but he could not call to his recollection the work 

 in which it occurred." At the place given Vigors 

 and Horsfield, treating of Australian birds, diagnosed a 

 section, and under the first species named Cuculus 

 variolosus, wrote : " There are six or seven species of 

 Cuculus belonging to Australia and Africa, which form 

 part of the same section of the group, and which 

 differ from the bird before us only in their colours 

 being bright and metallic ..." The other species 

 included are C. lucidus and C. metallicus. The species 

 C. variolosus is now considered a member of the group 

 Cacomantis. 



Therefore, if the African Cuckoos are divisible into 

 two groups, Chrysococcyx Boie must be used for the 

 C. smaragdineus Swainson group, and Lampromorpha 



