Letters, Announcements, fyc. 
3 77 
XXXVIII.— Letters, Announcements, fyc. 
We have received the following letters addressed to the 
Editors of f The Ibis — 
Sirs, —I have been always puzzled by the name of Strix 
flammea, given by Linnaeus to the Barn-Owl, as I could 
never understand why a bird which has not the slightest sign 
of the flame-colour should have been called flammea. Quite 
lately, looking into GesneFs celebrated work * De Avibus/ I 
have found what I think may be the explanation of how it 
was that Linnaeus used that name, which really is very inap¬ 
propriate when we take it to mean the colour of flame, as 
Mr. Wharton has done in the f Ibis ’ List of British Birds 
(p. 85). 
Gesner, in the above-mentioned work, treating of the Barn- 
Owl, “De altero gen ere Ululae, quod quidam flammeatum 
cognominant,'” after having given a figure of it, wrote as 
follows :—“ Figura haec est generis cuj usdam ululae, quod 
Germani circa Argentoratum vocant Schleyereul, id est 
Ululam flammeatam, quod nescio quomodo plumis circa 
faciem mulieris peplo seu flammeo obvolutae caput et faciem 
refer at.-” 
From this it appears to me very probable that Linnaeus 
wrote flammea instead of flammeata , thinking that flammea 
could be used like flammeata, to mean enveloped in a veil; 
and if I am right, flammea, in Linnaeuses mind, was not con¬ 
nected with flamma —flame, but with flammeum or flameum, 
the nuptial veil, which was of a crocus or yellow colour. 
Yours, &c., 
T. Salvador!. 
Turin, Zoological Museum, May 5th, 1886. 
Sirs, — I have the pleasure of informing you that Dr. 
Julius von Madarasz, of Budapest,- and I have the intention 
of publishing a monograph of the Pipridae, with coloured 
plates from the pencil of Herr von Madarasz, representing 
all the known species. 
2 D 
SER. V.—VOL. IV. 
