XVI 
monographic sketch of the family, with descriptions of all the then known species of Bee-eaters, 
accompanied by coloured illustrations ; hut the illustrations are poor, and the letterpress is merely 
a compilation from the writings of previous authors and of but little scientific value. In the 
earlier portion of the article he subdivides the Bee-eaters into three genera — Merops, Meropogon , 
and Nyctiornis ; hut at p. 82 he gives a review of the Bee-eaters, in which he places them in four 
sections, viz. : — i. Melittotherina, containing three genera, Melittotheres ( Merops nubicus and 
M.nubicoides ), Tephr tier ops ( Merops malimbicus ), and Melittophas {Merops bicolor) ; ii. Apiastrince, 
containing four genera, Aerops {Merops albicollis), Merops {Merops apiaster and Melittophcigus 
leschenaulti), Sphecophobus {Melittophagus pusillus, M. sonninii , and M. lafresnayei), and Melitto- 
pliagus {Dicrocercus Mrundineus and Merops ornatus ) ; iii. Bhlothrince , containing two genera, 
Bhlothrus {Merops viridis) and B lepharomerops {Merops persicus and M.philippinus ); and iv. Nyc- 
tiornina, containing five genera, Meropiscus {Melittophagus gularis), Coccolarynx {Melittophagus 
bullocki and M. bullockoides), Meropogon {M. forsteni), Nyctiornis (A. amictus), and Bucia {N. 
athertoni). From the above it will be seen that the generic divisions are somewhat erratic and 
peculiar. At p. 75 he attempts to resuscitate, under the name of Merops adansoni, Levaillant’s 
Guepier adanson, and figures it pi. ccccxlviii. 3243, copying Levaillant’s plate. This supposed 
species is, I may here mention, the Merops senegalensis of Shaw (Gen. Zool. viii. pt. i. p. 163, 1812) and 
the M. longicauda of Yieillot (Nouv. Diet. d’Hist. Nat. xiv. p. 15, 1817). In 1854 Bonaparte (Consp. 
Yolucr. Anisod. p. 8) proposed the generic title of Uric a, his type being Melittophagus quvnticolor ; 
hut this lapses into a synonym of Melittophagus. Cassin, in 1857 (Journ. Ac. Sc. Phil. 1857, p. 37), 
described and figured the still so little known Melittophagus nmelleri , under the name of Mero- 
piscus nmelleri; and in 1858 Yon Pelzeln (Sitzungsb. k. Ak. Wiss. Wien, xxxi. p. 320) described 
Melittophagus boleslavsleii. In 1859 Cabanis (Mus. Hein. ii. pp. 133-138) differentiated the 
following five genera, viz. Spheconax (type Melittophagus bullockoides), Melittias (type Melitto- 
phagus leschenaulti), Dicrocercus (type D. Mrundineus), Cosmaerops (type Merops ornatus), and 
Bogonomerops {Meropogon forsteni), of which only one, Dicrocercus, will stand. At the same 
time he described, under the name of Bhlothrus cyanophrys , the Blue-throated Green Bee-eater 
{Merops cyanophrys), which proves to be an excellent species. 
The same year (1859), Cassin (Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phil. 1859, p. 14) described the very 
distinct Merops breweri, first calling it by that name, but later {op. cit. p. 34) referring to it the 
generic title of Meropogon ; and the same year Heine (J. f. O. 1859, p. 434) proposed for it a new 
generic title, viz, that of Bombylonax, whereas one year later Hartlaub (in Wiegm. Archiv, xxvi. 
p. 90) proposed another generic name, viz. that of Archimerops, for the same species. This is the 
last generic title that I find on record for any of the Bee-eaters. As will be seen from the 
above notes, twenty-four generic names have been proposed for the Bee-eaters, of which I can only 
adopt five, viz. Nyctiornis, Meropogon, Merops, Dicrocercus, and Melittophagus. Cabanis in 1869 
(Von der Decken’s Beisen in Ost-Afr. iii. p. 34) described as new a species under the name of 
Merops cyanostictus ; but, so far as lean judge, it is a very slightly marked form of Mel'dlop liagus 
pusillus, and not worthy of specific rank. 
From this date to 1882 I find no new genera proposed and no new species described ; but in 
that year a very distinct new species, Merops boehmi, was described by Dr. Reichenow (Orn. 
Centralblatt, April 1882), and in the following year (Revoil’s Faune et Flore Cornalis, Ois. p. 5, 
1883) M. Oustalet described and figured Melittophagus revoili, a very excellent and distinct species, 
which will be found figured in the present work. Since then one more species of Bee-eater 
{Merops muscatensis) has been differentiated by my friend and late colleague Mr. R. Bowdler 
