332 The American Naturalist. [April, 
RECENT LITERATURE. 
Chapman on the Birds of the Island of Trinidad.'— 
During the early part of 1893, Mr. Chapman collected birds and made 
notes in the Island of Trinidad, and the paper we are here to notice is 
the printed account of his observations in that interesting quarter of 
the world. Its author leads off with a brief description of the Island 
and the various places upon it visited by him during his short stay 
there. Then follows several pages devoted to “The Faunal Position 
of Trinidad,” in which he very conclusively proves that that island 
“faunally, that is naturally, has no connection whatever with the West 
Indies, but is entirely South American in its affinities.” Further we 
are informed that an “ analysis of the distribution of the 199 resident 
land-birds common to Trinidad and the continent shows that it belongs 
in the Colombian, rather than in the Amazonian subregion. Thus 153 of 
these birds are found in both Guiana and Venezuela, while twenty-five 
are found in Venezuela but not in Guiana, and only eleven are foun 
in Guiana but not in Venezuela.” An interesting table is also given 
showing the South American element in the avifauna of Trinidad, as 
compared with the off lying islands of Tobago and Grenada. 
Mr. Chapman also deals in this paper with the Bibliography of the 
Trinidad Avifauna, and an entire and very important section of the 
work is devoted to “ General Remarks on Trinidad Bird Life.” Here 
the questions of “Number of Species ;” “Migration ;” “ Call-Notes 
and Songs ;” “Nesting” and “The Colors of Tropical Birds” are 
dealt with in a manner well calculated to excite the interest, and com- 
pel the attention of the philosophic student of bird-life in any part of 
the world where these observations may be read. ; 
This memoir is concluded by “ A List of the Birds of the Island . 
Trinidad,” which is prefaced by the following remark by its author : 
“ While I believe that the most natural order in which to arrange lists 
of species of any class of animals is to begin with the 
end with the highest, most writers on South American birds 
lowed exactly the opposite plan, and any attempt to change would now 
result in so much confusion that I have decided to follow the system 0 
ICHAPMAN, FRANK M., On the Birds of the Island of Trinidad. Authors 
ext. Bull. American Museum of Natural History, Vol. VI, Art. 1, PP- r ; 
York, Feb. 16, 1894. 
