Letters, Extracts, Notices, ^c. 527 
" Olbiorchilus troglodytes troglodytes (Linn.) '' ! Mr. Ober- 
holser (^Auk/ 1902, p. 175) maintains that the section of 
the Wrens to which the British species belongs is not entitled 
to the name '^ Anorthura'' assigned to it in the ^Catalogue 
of Birds/ because '^^ Ariorthura " is the strict equivalent of 
Troglodytes, and Troglodytes is properly applicable to the 
American group of Wrens typified by Troglodytes a'edon. 
He therefore proposes for MotacUla troglodytes of Linnaeus 
the new generic name Olbiorchilus , and, in accordance with 
the trinomialism now in fashion, the British Wren becomes 
Olbiorchilus troglodytes troglodytes ! 
To this we reply that ordinary common sense is sufficient 
to teach us that the type of the genus Troglodytes of Vieillot 
was intended to be Motacilla troglodytes Linn., although 
Vieillot, when he first mentioned the genus in his 'Oiseaux 
de I'Amerique Septentrionale ' (ii. p. 52), naturally enough, 
only referred to the American species. But on turning to 
Vieillot's List of Genera in his ' Analyse,' it will be found 
that the "Troglodyte^' of Buffon { = Motacilla troglodytes 
Linn.) is placed first in his list of species of Troglodytes and 
Troglodytes a'edon second. It cannot, surely, be denied that 
Vieillot has here pointed out what was his obvious intention 
in the plainest manner. We therefore venture to reject 
Mr. Oberholser's view that T. a'edon is the typical species 
of the genus Troglodytes, and we shall continue to call our 
British Wren by its time-honoured name. Even if the 
contrary opinion be held to be correct according to the 
rules of nomenclature adopted by the A.O.U., we do not 
see the necessity of separating Troglodytes a'edon and its 
allied forms from T. parvulus generically. 
Balceniceps at Khartum. — Mr. W. A. Milncr has kindly 
sent us a copy of a photograph of Balaniceps rex, lately 
taken from a specimen living in the Sirda,r^s Palace Garden 
at Khartum. This bird, after being 'Svinged/^ was captured 
alive on the White Nile by Col. Sparkes and presented to 
Lady Wingate. It will be recollected that two living 
