emi-Wood- 



SCOLOPAX. 463 



that the American Woodcock is apparently more nearly related to the European Woodcock 

 than either of them are to the Moluccan Woodcock, and that the Jack Snipe and the 

 Common Snipe are obviously nearer related to each other than either of them are to the 

 Imperial Snipe of Colombia. All generic distinctions must be genetic distinctions, 

 otherwise they are of no value. The theory that structural characters only are of generic 

 value is either based upon the presumption that they date further back than characters 

 founded upon difference in colour and pattern of colour, or it is an antiquated, unscientific, 

 and absurd hypothesis. 



In dividing the Snipes from the Woodcocks there cannot be much doubt that the 

 natural line is that laid down by our fourth character and confirmed by the fifth, both 

 characters being founded on differences of pattern of colour. It can scarcely be denied 

 that in the Snipes, at all events, differences in the pattern of colour are of older genetic 

 date, and therefore of higher generic value, than so-called structural differences, and that 

 those ornithologists who maintain the contrary are advocating a hypothesis inconsistent 

 with the theory of the evolution of species. 



The Snipes which are nearest allied to the four Woodcocks are presumably five 

 species, one of which has the inner webs of the primaries barred as in two of the typical 

 Woodcocks, and the other four have the tibia feathered almost to the joint of the tarsus, goeto. 

 but have only fourteen tail-feathers, a character which fortunately excludes one or two 

 species in which there is much individual variation in the feathering of the tibia. They 

 further resemble the Woodcocks in having, so far as is known, pale-coloured eggs. 

 It is necessary to coin a name for this group, and I propose to call them Semi- 

 Woodcocks. 



We have left the important group of typical Snipes, the creme de la creme of the Typical 

 genus, possibly the most highly developed, because showing the least trace of Woodcock Smpes. 

 blood and the closest relationship amongst themselves. One of them, which might 

 almost be regarded as subgenerically distinct, is the Jack Snipe, which differs in many 

 ways from its congeners. It has two instead of only one notch on each side of the 

 posterior margin of the sternum. Like the Woodcocks it has only twelve tail-feathers, 

 which resemble those of the Auckland Snipe in colour. Its tail is also more wedge- 

 shaped than that of any other Snipe. 



Synonymy of the Genus ScoLopax. 



Type. 



Scolopax,, Linneus, Syst. Nat. i. p. 145 (1758) ; Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 243 



(1766) No type. 



Gallinago, Leach, Syst. Cat. Mamm. ^c. Brit. Mus. p. 30 (1816) S. major. 



Rusticola, Vieillot, N. Diet. d'Hist. Nat. ill. p. 348 (1816) S. rusticola. 



Telmatias, Boie, Ms, 1826, p. t80 S. gallinago. 



