elk We ie ee ae Be 
1878. | B jological Nomenclature. 517 
fornia. Of the four species of Apus all inhabit the Central 
province; Apus egualis lives on the plains of the Rocky mount- 
ains, and also at Matamoras, in Mexico. It is a curious fact that 
Apus lucasanus Pack., not only occurs at Cape St. Lucas, Lower 
California, but is also an abundant species at Ellis, Kansas. This 
is a parallel case to the presence of certain birds at Cape St. 
Lucas which, as observed by Prof. Baird, belong to the Central 
rather than to the Pacific province. Of the genus Lepidurus there 
are two forms (ZL. couesii and L. dilobatus) characterizing the plains. 
L. couesii occurs in Northern Montana, and is allied to a recently 
described Lepidurus from Archangel, Russia, according to 
Lilljeborg. 
The eastern limits of the Central province extend to near the 
97th meridian in Kansas and Nebraska, according to the writer's 
observations. 
——:0:— - a 
THE REPORT OF THE COMMITTEE OF THE AMERI- 
CAN ASSOCIATION OF 1876 ON BIOLOGICAL NO- 
MENCLATURE. 
BY E. D. COPE. 
P the year 1842 the British Association for the Advancement of 
Science took into consideration the question of zodlogical 
nomenclature, and through a committee made a report, which 
embodies a series of recommendations in the form of rules. In 
1863 another committee of the British Association revised these 
rules and reprinted them with various additional recommenda- 
tions. This report was republished in this country with a few 
additional suggestive notes by Prof. A. E. Verrill, in 1869." 
Since that date the question has been discussed by the American 
entomologists Scudder, Edwards and LeConte. 
The rules issued at the earlier periods above mentioned dealt 
: largely with etymological and literary questions, while admitting 
in general terms the necessity of observing the law of priority of 
date. The energy of some of the resurrectionists of obsolete 
Works in bringing to light old names, however, soon drew atten- 
tion to the importance of ascertaining the real nature of priority 
of date; and the close coincidence of date of some modern pub- 
lications, has brought up the question from another side. The ee vs 
> + Amer, Jour. Sci. and Arts, July. 
