546 CORRESPONDENCE IBIS, 94

is a short-billed snipe. T h e barred under-pans are characteristic of C. media, as opposed to the white unbarred underparts of C. mgripennis and C. galIinago.

.As regards flight, that of C. media is always rather floppy and direct, but m y experience of both C . nigripemtis and C . gallinago is that temperature, time of day and wind largely govern the twisting flight of both. I have seen both sluggish on hot days without wind, but both I ' sniping " in cold weather with wind. The flight of c'. nigripennis is never so " owlish " as that of C. media.

The evidence which finally decided me was mallophagan; such evidence is not conclusive but contributory. T h e RiIallophaga of both C. gallinago and C . nigripennis are identical and differ from the Mallophaga of C. media.

White introduces a complication-the status of C. nzucroducfyla of Madagascar. There i s yet another complication, that of C. stentira, which has a flight resembling that of C'. nigripmnis, but never so sluggish as that of C. media. I t is also a long-billed snipe and closely resembles C. nigripennis but has even more attenuated outer tail- feathers.

I am content to adopt White's suggestion, that until we know more about it, these snipe had better be treated as separate species with very close affinities.

2. I,ARUS DOMINICASVY Lichtenstein. Perhaps R'hite is right.

C. niEripmnis may have derived from C. stenurn.

But here again I was guided by mallophagan evidence, those of L. dorninic.nnirs being similar to those of L. nzarinus and different from those of the l . . f u s o r s - n r ~ ~ ~ ~ i / c r t r r s group. I do not regard the colour of the legs of the latter group as diagnostic.

Whilst on this subject, may I add to examples given in my paper (' Ibis ' 195 1 : 447) :- The genus S'dponiis occurring in both India and Africa. 'l'he Lfirriris f.risrrrtrts-collirrio group with race ,grrbetntw in Africa and oittcrtits

in India. The genus Pittn with many spccies in south-east Asia and two in tropical Africa,

the two continental groups separated by 3,000 miles. The genus It7dicator with a single species in the Himalayas and eight species in

Africa. Coracias benghalensis n i th races iiidicirs and afinis in Asia, and girrrrilus and semenovi

from North Africa to Europe and Central Asia. I l n l c j v n rhloris, \\.it11 its race nhJwiwirn on the African shores of the Red Sea, then

a gap (no races in Arabia or South Persia) and occurring in many races from India to the Malay Archipelago.

Ardentis nrnbs \vith African races lynesi, stieberi, bictleri, s/rii/hiirnculus and kori in .4frica, tii:rireps in India, and nrfstrnlic in Australia.

London. 19 April 1952.

R. ~IEISERTZHAGEN.

IXTERXXTIOS..21, CODE OF ZOOLOGICAL NOMENCLATURE. Zoologists and palaeontologists are reminded that at its meeting held in Paris

in 1948 the Thirteenth International Congress of Zoology decided that a number of general problems of great importance involving the text of the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature should be brought forward for decision at the next (Fourteenth) International Congress of Zoology at its meeting to be held in Copenhagen in 1953. The Paris Congress further decided that, as a preliminary to the submission of these problems to the Copenhagen Congress, the Secretary to the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature should confer with interested specialists a d , having done so. should submit comprehensive Reports, with recommendations.

1952 CORRESPONDENCE 547

In pursuance of the duties so entrusted to me, I have prepared papers on each of the problems remitted to me for Report, in each of which I have set out the issues on which, as it appears to me, the Copenhagen Congress will need to take decisions. In these papers also I have submitted for consideration a number of suggestions based upon such preliminary consultations as it has already been possible to hold. The object of these papers is to elicit expressions of opinion on the issues involved from as wide a circle as possible of interested specialists.

The subjects dealt with in the papers referred to above are the following :

(1) Emendation of zoological names : proposed substitution for Article 19 of simple clear-cut rules capable of being easily applied (Commission’s reference Z.N.(S.)356) ;

(2) Clarification and amplification of the rules relating to the naming of families and lower categories of suprageneric rank (Commission’s reference Z.N.(S.)357):

(3) Proposed introduction of rules for regulating the naming of Orders and higher taxonomic categories (Commission’s reference Z.N.(S.)360) ;

(4) Species to be accepted as the type species of a nominal genus, the name of which was published in a generic synonymy, if names so published are to be treated as possessing nomenclatorial availability (Commission’s reference Z.N.(S.)387) ;

(5) Application to be given to a trivial name which, when first published, was applied to a particular species or specimen but which is stated also to be a substitute name for some previously published name (Commission’s reference Z.N.(S.)361) ;

( 6 ) Neotypes : question whether this class of type specimen soulhh be officially recognized and, if so, under what conditions (Commission’s reference Z.N.(S.)358) ;

(7) The means to be devised for securing stability in zoological nomenclature (Commission’s reference Z.N.(S.)359).

-2 special volume (vol. 7) of the ‘ Bulletin of Zoological Nomenclature ’ has been allotted for the publication of the foregoing papers, which it must be understood constitute an important instalment of the Agenda on nomenclature questions of the Copenhagen Congress next year. Parts 1-2 containing the first instalment of the above papers was published on 25 February 1952; the publication of the remainder of the volume was completed on 15 April 1952.

The object of the present notice is to draw the attention of zoologists and palaeon- tologists to the arrangements being made for the consideration of the foregoing problems by the Copenhagen Congress next year, and to express the hope that Nomenclature Committees of museums and other scientific institutions and also as many individual specialists as possible will furnish as soon as possible answers to the questions specifically asked in the concluding paragraph in each of the seven papers enumerated above regarding the action which, in their opinion or, in the case of Committees, in the opinion of their members, it is desirable that the Copenhagen Congress should take on each of the important problems involved. It is particularly hoped that there will be a wide and representative response to the present appeal, so that the proposals to be submitted to the Copenhagen Congress may be such as will command the widest possible measure of support among the general body of zoologists and palaeontologists, both those engaged on taxonomic work and also those engaged in the teaching of zoology and geology and those working in the various fields of applied biology.

Nomenclature Committees and individual specialists who respond to the present appeal for assistance and advice will render a double service if they will be so good as to assist the International Commission by observing the following procedure when furnishing statements of their views : (1) Where comments are furnished on two or more of the general problems enumerated above, the comments furnished on each of those problems should be on separate sheets of paper. (2) Every comment

548 CORRESPONDENCE IBIS, 94

furnished should be clearly marked with the Commission’s Reference Number as indicated in the list given above. (3) Comments should be typewritten, on one side of the paper only, with \vide margins and should be furnished in duplicate.

In order that there may be sufficient time to prepare the Reports called for by the Paris Congress-and thus to make those Reports available well ahead of the Copenhagen Congress-it is particularly hoped that Nomenclature Committees and individual specialists responding to the present appeal bc so good as to despatch their comments as promptly as possible.

.A11 communications relating to the foregoing matters should be addressed to myself, as Secretary to the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature (2s Park Village East, Regent’s Park, London, N.W.1, England).

FRAYCIS HEMVIW, Serretary I.C.Z.N.

THE ORSITHO1,OGIC‘AL 1,IBRARIES AT OXFORD.

The Edward Grey Institute of Field Ornithology at Oxford houses two libraries, the reference library of the Institute (now known as the Alexander Library) and the lending library of the British Trust for Ornithology.

The Alexander Library has become one of the most complete ornithological libraries in Britain. T h e use of it is, of course, by no means confined to the Institute staff. -411 members of the British Trust for Ornithology, of Oxford University and of the Oxford Ornithological Society have an equal right to use it as a reference library, while an increasing number of ornithologists from abroad visit Oxford specially in order to study there. Further, it has now been agreed that members of the British Ornithologists’ Cnion will be given similar privileges to members of the B.T.O. for \>orking in the library. T h e Alexander Library has, in fact, become a national library for ornithological research.

’I’hc library has gro\vn up largely by donations from private individuals, including A h . W. B. Alexander himself, while several distinguished ornithologists have bequeathed their libraries or particular books. -As a result the library is nearly complete so far as works on British birds are concerned, except for the expensive colour-plate books and other collectors’ pieces. For other parts of the world the cover is not yet so good, except as regards ornithological journals, for which, thanks to generous donations from ornithological societies and institutions in a 4 parts of the world, we have complete series for all recent years.

The object of this letter is to ask ornithologists who are disposing of their libraries or of particular books to bear in mind the needs of the Alexander Library. We would be particularly grateful for gifts and bequests, but if this is impossible, for first offers before the books are sold to a dealer, so that the Institute may have the chance of buying at dealers’ prices. We are particularly anxious to fill serious gaps in our collection of bird-books relating to Africa, which arc the more serious now that we haw so many \isitors from that continent to work in the library during their leave. Other notable gaps include Groebbel’s ‘ Iler L’ogel ’, Phillips’ ‘ A Natural History of the Ducks ’ and Casey Wood’s translation of Frederick 11’s trratise on hawking.

The Edward Grey Institute also houses the lending library of the British ‘Trust for Ornithology, which consists of duplicates from the main library. By agreement between the Institute and the Trust, any book presented to the Institute which is already in the Alexander Library is transferred to the Trust library, and conversely, any book given to the Trust which is not in the -4Iexander Library is transferred to the latter. The lending library has grown up almost wholly from the gifts or bequests