| OCR Text |
Show 1895.] ON SEVERA L RARE PAL.EABCTIC BIBDS. 311 4. Notes on several rare Pahcarctic Birds. By H. E. DRESSER, F.L.S., F.Z.S. [Eeceived April 2, 1895.] Some time ago Professor Menzbier of Moscow forwarded to me the type of his Gecinus fiavirostris to compare with Mr. Hargitt's type of G. gorii. This, on comparison, M r . Hargitt found to be conspecific with his species, so that his name of gorii becomes a synonym of G. fiavirostris. H e then told m e that he was very desirous to examine a specimen of Dr. Radde's Picus minor, var. quadrifasciatus (Orn. Cauc. p. 315, pi. xix. fig. 5), which he thought would probably prove to be a good species, and which he had included in the Cat. B. Brit.sMus. (xviii. p. 256), as such, under the name Dendrocopus quadrifasciatus (Radde). I therefore wrote to m y friend Dr. G. Radde, w h o at once most courteously forwarded to m e one of his type specimens, which I n o w exhibit. Directly I received it I wrote to M r . Hargitt to arrange a meeting so that we could compare it together, and received a reply from Miss Hargitt to say that her brother was ill and confined to his bed. Erom this, unfortunately, he never again rose, and w e all have to mourn the loss of an excellent ornithologist and certainly our best authority on the "Woodpeckers. Owing to Mr. Hargitt's death I have had to compare the specimen in question myself, and, as will be seen, it has, as stated by Dr. Radde, only four white transverse bands on the wing, instead of five as is usually the case in P. minor ; but on the one wing the fifth bar is present though only slightly developed. I have here several specimens of P. minor from Northern Europe for comparison, and two of these have, as will be seen, only four bars on one wing aud five on the other. Hence it would appear that P. quadrifasciatus is only a variety of Picus minor, with which it agrees closely in every other respect except that it is somewhat smaller in size, measuring culmen 0*61 inch, wing 3*5, tail 2*05, and tarsus 0*6. The underparts are also somewhat brown in tinge, but not browner than in several other North-European specimens of P. minor. Besides the specimen of P. quadrifasciatus, Dr. Radde sent his type specimen of Lanius minor, var. obscurior (Orn. Cauc. p. 282, pi. xviii. fig. 2), which I also exhibit, together with several specimens of L. minor from Southern Europe. As will be seen, Dr. Radde's specimen differs only in being rather duller in tone of colour, and is, as suggested also by Dr. Radde, merely an individual variety of L. minor. The Pied Flycatcher of the Caucasus, however, of which I have received several specimens, two of which I now exhibit, is a good species, differing both from Muscicapa atricapilla and M. collaris in having a semicollar and in having much more white on the tail than in either of those species. It was described and figured by M r . E. E. von Homeyer under the name of Muscicapa semitorquata (Zeitschr. d. gesammt. Orn. 1885, p. 185, pi. x.). Mr. Homeyer had before |
