23G Mr. W. R. Ogilvic-Giant on American Gallinae. 
bird t])e name intermedia, had no right to withdraw this 
name in favour of eUloti. 
Coues (Auk, xiv. p. 275) says : — '' There is probably 
another change required iu our nomenclature of this geuus; 
certainly so, if, as some think, M. g. ellioti of Sennett, 1892, 
is synonymous with his M. g. intermedia of 1879/'' 
There can be no question about these names being syno- 
nymous ; Sennett clearly states that they are so, and both 
were founded on Rio Grande birds. 
Mr. Nelson's M, g. merriami is also merely a synonym ; 
but by contrasting his birds with examples of M. gallopavo 
(= mexicoma Nelson) and M. americana [=i fera Nelson) he 
Avould have us suppose that his ^'^new subspecies" is very 
distinct. A comparison with M. intermedia [=■ gallopavo 
Nelson), with which his birds are obviously synonymous, is 
avoided [cf. Auk, xviii. p. 310 (1901)]. 
2. Meleagris AMERICANA (Cat. B. xxii. p. 389). 
The Turkey question was discussed at some length by 
Dr. Coues in 1897 [Auk, xiv. pp. 272-275 (1897)]. 
Taking the ' Catalogue of Birds ' he goes through all the 
older synonyms given there under the heading Meleagris 
americana. These names are as follows : — 
Gallopavo sylvestris Catesby, Carol, i., App. p. xliv (1730) ; 
Brisson, Orn. v. p. 162 (1760). 
Meleagris americana Bartram, Trav. p. 290 (1791) [Penn- 
sylvania] . 
Meleagris palaw a Barton, Med. & Phys. J. ii. pt. i. pp. 163- 
164 (1805) [United States]. 
Meleagris silvestris Vieill. N. Diet. d'Hist. Nat. ix. p. 447 
(1817). 
Meleagris f era Vieill. Gal. Ois. ii. p. 10, pi. 201 (1825). 
Coues states his reasons for rejecting the older names, but 
does not suggest which name, if any, should be substituted 
for M. americana. In 1899 (Auk, xvi. p. 77) he rectifies 
his previous omission and proposes the name Meleagris gallo- 
pavo f era. He also remarks ^^ there occurs on p. 274 the 
typographical error oi pera for fera in citing the Gal. Ois. ii. 
