ACCOUNTS, &C., OF THE BRITISH MUSEUM. 3p 



"With regard to the collections formed for the purposes of study by specialists, the 

 disposition of the Mammalia has been already described in last year's Report. To the 

 immense collection of Bird-skins, about 90,000 in number, a separate room, in the vicinity 

 of the exhibition series, has been allotted. This room is fitted with 76 cabinets in 

 accordance with the Estimate made in 1876, but so largely has this part of the collection 

 been increased within the last seven years, that additional cabinets are urgently required. 

 Skius of Fishes, Shells, dry Echinoderms, Corals, and Sponges are placed in the drawers 

 of the table-cases in the same galleries in which the exhibited series are arran<Ted. The 

 Entomological collections are placed in four rooms of the basement, and finally all 

 specimens preserved in spirits are for safety's sake deposited in a separate buildino- con- 

 nected by a covered way with the main building. 



Scientific work connected with the arrangement of the collections has been restricted 

 to a few families : the specimens of Geckos, I'ygopodidce and UelodermatidcB, have been 

 named and arranged ; the motlis of tlie family Urupterygidce, re-mounted and re-arrano-ed, 

 and the arrangement of the difficult Hymenopterous family Chalcididce, has made further 

 progress. 



II. — Duplicates. 



All specimens which during the work of arranging the collections or incorporating 

 recent accessions are found to be duplicates, are set aside, either for purposes of 

 exchange, or for distribution to the Museums of Edinburgh and Dublin, or Provincial 

 Museums in the United Kingdom, or Colonial Institutions. In the course of the past 

 year 16,332 specimens (viz., 91 Mammalia, 1,409 Birds, 4,107 Birds' eggs, 129 Reptiles, 

 137 Batrachians, 453 Fishes, 8,245 Mollusks, 162 Crustacea, 1,467 Insects, 32 Echino- 

 derms, 100 Corals and Sponges) have been thus distributed among six institutions, viz., 

 the Museum of Edinburgh, Dublin, Maidstone, Cardiff, Hull, and the Smithsonian 

 Institution, the latter receiving the specimens in exchange for a number of desiderata sent 

 at various times to the British Museum. Five of the applicants who have established a 

 claim for the reception of zoological duplicates, have now been supplied with a second 

 consignment. 



III. — Cataloguing. 



The following Catalogues have been issued during the year 1883 : — 



1. " Catalogue of Birds," Vol. VII., containing the second portion of the Timeliiam. 

 By R. B. Sharpe, 8vo. (pp. 700, with 15 plates). 



2. " Catalogue of Birds," Vol. VIIL, containing the Laniidcs, Parida and Certhiimopha. 

 By Dr. Hans Gadow, 8vo. (pp. 386, with 9 plates). , 



The ninth volume of the " Catalogue of Birds," the " Catalogues of Books " of the 

 Departmental and General Libraries, are in the press, and a full report of the " Alert " 

 collections, as well as the tenth vohune of the " Catalogue of Birds," a second edition of 

 the " Catalogue of Lizards," the second volume of the " List of Hymenoptera," and the 

 sixth part of illustrations of typical specimens of " Lepidoptera Heterocera," are in course 

 of preparation. 



Reports on recent acquisitions, with descriptions of the new species, were prepared and 

 published in various scientific journals. The following may be mentioned : — " Descrip- 

 tion of two new species of Pteropus from the Caroline Islands," by Mr. O. Thomas ; 

 " Notes on new or little-known species of Frogs," " Descriptions of new species of 

 Lizards and Frogs," collected by Herr A. Forrer in Mexico ; " On the Geckos of New 

 Caledonia " ; " Descriptions of new species of Reptiles and Batrachians in the British 

 IMuseum ; " " On the Lizards of the genus Lophognathus ; " " Report on a collection of 

 Reptiles and Batrachians from the Timor Laut Islands, made by Mr. H. 0. Forbes," by 

 Mr. G. A. Bouienger; "Descriptions of four new species of Helicidce" by Mr. E. A. 

 Smith ; " Descriptions of new species of Coleoptera belonging to the Rhipiphonda,''^ by 

 Mr. C. 0. Waterhouse ; " Heterocerous Lepidoptera collected in Chili by Thomas 

 Edmonds," Part IV. (Micro-Lepidoptera) ; " On a collection of Indian Lepidoptera 

 received from Lieut. Colonel Charles Swinhoe, with numerous notes by the collector ;" 

 " List of Lepidoptera collected by Mr. H. O. Forbes in the Islands of Timor Laut " ; 

 " The Lepidoptera collected during the Expedition of H.M.S. ' Challenger ;' " " On 

 some Lepidoptera, chiefly from the Island of Nias;" " On the Moths of the family 

 Urapterygidce in the collection of the British Museum," by Mr. A. G. Butler; " Remarks 

 on the genera of the sub-family Chulcidince, with synonymic notes and descriptions of 

 new species of Leucospidincc and Chalcidina; " " Notes on a small collection of Hymen- 

 optera and Diptera from the Timor Laut Islands, formed by Mr. H. O. Forbes," by Mr. 

 W. F. Kirby; "Studies in the, Holothuroidea, II. Descriptions of New Species"; 

 "Report on t\\Q Echinodermata collected by Mr. Day in H.M.S. ' Triton,' off the Eastern 

 Coast of Scotland ; " " Observations on the Generic and Specific Characters of the 

 Laganidtz ; " " Descriptions of the new species of Asteride.a in the collection of the 

 British Museum," by Mr. F. J. Bell; "Notes on Zoophytes and Sponges obtained by 

 Mr. F. Day off the East Coast of Scotland," by Mr. S. O. Ridley. 



0.63. E 4 



