INTRODUCTION. 
of Buffon as those species he intended should be included in his genus. These are four 
in number, three only of which belong to the short-tailed group, and one to the long- 
tailed. They are Р. sorpipa (Müll), P. moLuccensis (Müll), P. CORONATA (Müll.), 
and E. GUATANA (Mull.), as recognized in this Monograph. Pitta, Vieillot, is therefore a 
composite genus, and an author, when dividing the l'amily into different genera, has a 
perfect right (and this is a principle recognized by all naturalists) to choose the type for 
his division Prrra from among those species included in Vieillot's genus, when he had 
selected no especial one as his type, but made them all equal, perceived no generic 
differences among the species known to him, but placed both long- and short-tailed birds 
in the same genus. 
In my former Monograph I restricted the term Pitta to those birds with the lengthened, 
graduated tails, and adopted the term Brachyurus for those with short, nearly square tails. 
The last genus had been twice previously employed in zoology ; and although thirty years 
ago this was not considered an especial objection, yet, according to the principles adopted 
at the present day, it cannot be employed again in Ornithology. In 1850, Reichenbach 
separated the fourth species in Vieillot’s genus, P. GUAIANA (Mull.), from the others, and 
made it the type of a new genus Evcicnura, thus leaving the short-tailed birds to 
represent the genus Prrra, the type of which, if we take the first species mentioned by 
Buffon, would be the ** Merle des Philippines," P. sorpıpa (Müll.), and not P. BRACHYURA 
(Linn.) as given by Sclater, the latter species not even being mentioned by Buffon in 
his work. The following are the terms proposed at various times as genera or subgenera, 
with the species selected as types : 
Type. 
1816. Prrra, Vieillot, Analyse, p. 42 . 7 : : P. sordida (Mull.). 
1817. МүтотнЕвА, Cuv. Regn. Anim. vol. i. p. 356 
(nec hg. 1811) . Р. brachyura (Linn.). 
1821. Bracayurus, Thunb. Vet.-Akad. Handl. p. 370 
(nec Latr. 1802, nec Fisch. 1814) . | P. brachyura (Linn.). 
1827. Crrra, Wagl. Syst. Av., Corvus, 1827 (nec Boie, 
о cm я 
1837. Pazupicora, Hodg. Journ. As. Soc. Beng. vol. vi. 
p- 103 (nee Wagl. 1830) P. nepalensis (Hodg.). 
1843. Hyprornis, Blyth, Journ. As. Soe. Beng. vol. xii. 
р. 960. : E : : : > P. nepalensis (Hodg.). 
1844. HxLEonwis, Hodg. Gray, Zool. Misc. p. 83 ; P. nepalensis (Hodg.). 
1850. Eucrcuza, Reich. Syst. Av. р. . Р. guaiana (Müll.). 
1854. Ствлхтірітта, Bon. Consp. Voluc. Anisod. p. 7. P. cerulea (Raffles). 
1854. Евүтнкорттта, Bon. Consp. Volue. Anisod. р. 7. P. mackloti, Temm. 
1854. Inrprerrra, Bon. Consp. Volue. Anisod. p. 7 . P. baudi, Müll. & Schleg. 
