THE AMERICAN NA TURALIST [Vol. XXXVII. 



same excellent work, and in the same article ("Kingfisher"), 

 Newton further states that " the common Kingfisher of Europe 

 is the representative of a well-marked family of birds, the Alcedi- 

 nidce or Halcyonidce of ornithologists, which is considered by 

 some authorities to be closely related to the Ihtccrotidce ; but 

 the affinity can sc arc ely be said as yet to be proved ; and to the 

 present writer there seems to be at least some ground for believ- 

 ing that a nearer alliance is to be found in the Galbnlidce, 

 MomotidiC, Meropidte, and perhaps some other families — 

 though all may possibly be discovered to belong to one and the 



The Halcyonitormes of biirbringer form one of the suborders 



(gens) viz., the Halcyones, the Bucerotes, and the Meropes. 

 In the first-named we find but one Family (saisu latiori), the 

 Alcedinida\ and this he divides into two others (sensn stric- 

 tiori), the Halcyonidae, and the Alcedinidse. The Bucerotes 

 contain the Bucerotidae and the Upupidae, while the Meropes 

 contain only the single family Meropida?. 



In his Manual of North American Birds Robert Ridgway 

 places the family Alcedinidse, together with the Cuculidae, Tro- 

 gonidae and Momotidas in an Order Coccyges, but in differentiat- 

 ing the kingfishers gives a very slender array of charac ters, and 

 no structural ones. (Phila. 1887, PP- 271-279.) 



It is an interesting fact, although we have as yet but little 

 knowledge of the habits of the jaeamars (Galbulidae), that at 

 least some of the South American species secure their insect 

 food after the manner of some of the Dacelonime, and that fur- 

 ther they make their nesting holes in marl-banks, thus agreeing 

 with the nidification of some of the kingfishers (Ceryle). 



Newton is not alone among ornithologists in the belief that the 

 kingfishers are in some way more or less related to the jaeamars 

 (Galbulidae) and the bee-eaters (Meropidae). I believe it was 

 the naturalist Lesson who named one genus of jaeamars, Jaca- 

 maralcyon, and another Jacamerops. 



It is perfectly safe to say at the present writing that there 

 are no two avian classifiers who agree exactly on the question 

 of the relationships of the kingfishers, while on the other 



