ORNITHOLOGICAL NOTES. 
carried out. Hight years ago, the British Agsociation issued a code 
of rules based upon this great principle. These rules have since 
been translated, discussed, and substantially adopted by the most 
eminent naturalists of France, Germany, Italy, Sweden, and Ame- 
rica, and it is therefore to be regretted, that so meritorious a 200- 
logist as M. Malherbe should have departed from them. 
For some reason which he does not explain, the author spoils the 
uniformity even of his own nomenclature, by using in some cases 
the termination picos, and in others picus. The termination picos 
cannot, in any case, be used in zoology ; Jjirst, because there is n0 
such word in the Greek language as noc; and, secondly, because, 
if there were, it would become picus when adopted into the Latin 
form employed in zoology. The rules for Latinising Greek words 
are. short and simple, and had the author followed them, he would 
not have issued such a word as Phaiopicos, but would have written 
it Pheeopicus ; still less would he have given us a word half French 
and half Latin, in the case of Colombpicus, when it might have 
been so easily made into Columbpicus. 
It will be useful to enumerate the nineteen genera of Picide 
adopted by M. Malherbe; and we will at the same time add the 
Synonymous generic names which are equivalent to his, and which, 
on the ground of priority, ought to be retained. 
In thus making a concordance between his system and that of 
others, we do not imply that the previously formed genus is in each 
case exactly coincident in extent or in definition with his a 
but merely that the Malherbian genus includes the type-speci © 
the previous author, whose generic name must therefore be regard 
as synonymous with it, and be retained accordingly. 
1. Megapicos, Malh. = Campephilus, Gray, 1840. Type, @ pr 
cipalis (Linn.) 
2. Dryopicos, Malh., Section I. = Dryocopus, Boie, 1826. TyP® 
D. martius (Linn.) 1837 

» Section II. = Hemilophus, Swains., 
Type, H. mackloti (Wagler.) ‘of 
3. Picus, Linn., Malh. = Picus, Linn., 1735. Type, P. ™4 
(Linn.) F 
4. Picoides, Lacep., Malh. = Picoides, Lacep., 1799- il 
P. tridactylus (Linn.) 
18 
