THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA, 
present connection he recorded the suction tongue, but referred for details and 
nomination to his forthcoming account with Horsfield of Australian Birds. 
In the same Journal for July, p. 280, a report of the Description of 
Australian Birds read at the Linnean Society’s meeting was included, noting 
that certain Australian parrots had tongues formed for suction, but no name 
was given. On the next page, reporting the succeeding meeting of May 10th, 
we read : “ Mr. Vigors read a continuation of the ‘ Catalogue of the New Holland 
Birds in the Collection of the Linnean Society,’ by Dr. Horsfield and himself. 
In this portion of the Catalogue, the Psittacidce of New Holland were described, 
and the characters given of the new generic groups N anodes, Platycercus, 
Palceornis, Trichoglossus and Calyptorhynchus. The characters of these 
groups were explained by a reference to the birds themselves in the Society’s 
Collection, which were exhibited to the meeting.” 
In the next number (October) Vigors published a New Arrangement 
of Birds, but only gave generic names, including Caly'ptorhynchus, Nanodes, 
and Trichoglossus, with a footnote (p. 400) : “ The genera . . . are among the 
New Holland groups lately described by Dr. Horsfield and myself.” 
The names thus published became common property, and consequently 
we find in the Diet. Sci. Nat. (Levr.), Vol. XXXIX., published on April 29, 
1826, Desmarest, when he monographed the Parrots, commenting on this 
classification in some detail. With regard to the present genus he wrote : 
“ Le genre Trichoglossus Horsfield comprend toutes les especes dont la langue 
est terminee par un pinceau de filamens cartilagineaux.” Desmarest rejected 
this, so did not further note it, and consequently it still remained exactly 
indeterminable. Later in the same year, in the Gen. Zool., Vol. XIV., pt. i., 
Stephens made use of the above names, citing in connection with them certain 
species and giving short diagnoses, observing on p. 109 under the name 
Calyptorhynchus : “ The generic character not having been published, I have 
merely given the above concise definition, and must refer my readers to the 
fifteenth volume of the Linnean Transactions, now in the press, in which 
they will find them accurately laid down by Mr. Vigors : the same remark 
may also apply to the genera Nanodes and Trichoglossus of the same author.” 
When Vol. XV. of the Linnean Transactions appeared in 1827, the genus 
Trichoglossus was fully characterised by Vigors and Horsfield and species 
described, but no type was named. It has been commonly accepted as of 
that introduction, but Stephens’ use of it in a valid manner has undoubted 
priority, and it must therefore be cited as of the latter author. 
Gould, in his Introd. Birds Austr., 8vo. Ed., p. 76, 1848, wrote: “The 
arboreal group of Trichoglossi or honey-eating Parrakeets, if not so numerous 
in species as the grass-feeding Parrakeets, whose habits lead them to frequent 
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