The British Guiana Museum. 26*7 
being found only in the southern parts of the conti- 
nent. 
The colleftion of birds in the Museum is that one of 
the different groups of colonial animals, which is best 
exhibited and most representative. More detailed refer- 
ence has therefore been made to their modern classifica- 
tion, and especially to that of the more commonly 
occurring families, than in the case of any other group ; 
while the special features of each group have been 
pointed out to enable the visitor to become really familiar 
with the chief forms of the varied assemblage of Guiana 
birds, as illustrated by specimens exhibited. The popular 
treatment of such subje&s, noticeable in general works 
on Natural History, is too often attended by a disregard 
of those main chara6leristics on which families and main 
groups are based, so that while a visitor may know that 
such and such birds are called chatterers, or manakins, 
or jacamars, he would be quite at a loss to indicate the 
charafters of these groups. In the immense and commonly- 
occurring groups of the woodpecker order and of the 
perching birds, more especially, an attempt has been 
made to help the visitor in this respe<5t. 
In the last case that remains for inspettion, is a 
colleftion of stuffed colonial reptiles (a skull of the gavial 
or crocodile of the river Ganges is, however, included 
with the colonial forms). A very large number of the 
specimens, more especially the snakes, are in sad need 
1 of renewal ; but it is evidently a very difficult matter to 
1 obtain suitable specimens of this group to prepare as 
mounted or stuffed obje&s— added to which is the 
' unsatisfaftoriness of thus showing such specimens. A 
few examples of each of the four living orders of reptiles 
