May -t913 PUBLICATIONS REVIEWED 131 the trip, Melospiga m. inexpectata and Passer- clla i. altivaganX, were described in an earlier, preliminary paper, confined to descriptions of these races, the present report being a general account of the entire collec- tion. The region visited, comprising ad- jointing portions of southern Alberta and British Columbia, includes parts of two very different faunal areas, and a study of the material collected is accordingly productive of many interesting and illuminating facts in re- gard to the manner of occurrence of certain of the species and sub-species encountered. Among the critical comments the following seem to be of particular interest to Californian crnithologists: Breeding specimens of Leucos- tictc t. tephrocotis from this region are de- clared to be indistinguishable from birds from the California Sierras. Zonotrichia leuco- phrys and Z. gambeli are considered to be specifically distinct, as both were found breed- ing at the same locality, each retaining its dis- tinctive characters, and no intergrades being found. Junco hyemalis and Junco oreganus are also believed to be distinct species, a con- viction shared by the present reviewer, upon very similar evidence to that advanced by Mr. Riley. Tim Orange-crowned Warbler of the region is called Fermivora celata celata, Ober- holser's F. celata orestera not being recog- nized; similarly in treating the Myrtle War- bler (Dendroica coronata), McGregor's D. coronata hooveri is ignored. Robins collected, declared to be intermediate in characters 'be- tween Planesticus m. migratorius and P.m. propinquus, are considered as "belonging un- doubtedly to the form described as Planesticus migratorius caurimts Grinnell", but the name migratorius is used to designate them. Specimeus of I47ilsonia pusilla pusilla were taken at a British Columbian locality, and W. p. pileolata at a point in Alberta, farther east, a peculiarity of distribution not explained or commented upon by the author. The report contains a quantity of valuable and authoritative data from a little known region, and is a correspondingly welcome ad- dition to the ornithological literature of the west.--H. S. Sw^?'H. COLOR STANDARDS AND COLOR NOMENCLA- ?u?Z. By Ro?:?' RiImw^. pp. (1-4); i-iv; 1-44; frontispiece; pls. ?.?t?. Washington, D.C., 1912 [January 16, 1913]. Publisheql by the author. Price $8.20. The names of colors as well as uames of animals and plants need to be exact and sta- ble. No scientific worker whcse investigations necessitate the use of color names can fail keenly to realize both the indefinitehess of most color designations, and the lack of a standard of color values that in exactness and systematic arrangement adequately meets the requirements of modern science. Most of the existing color manuals are very unsatisfactory in practical use, either from want of proper designations or sufficient number of colors, from cumbersomehess, or poor arrangement. Furthermore there is no correlation between them. The best one is Mr. Ridgway's. pre.- vious color book, "Nomenclature of Colors for Naturalists", which, however, has long been out o? print. The present work, cQnfessedl? not a tech- nical treatise on color, aims definitely to standardize colors and color names, and to provide ari adequate nomenclature, with sam- ples of color sufficient for all practical descrip- tive and other related purposes. To this task Mr. Ridgway brings a lifetime of experience as artist and Zoologist, and twenty-five years' special study of the subject. That he has suc- ceeded is evident from even a cursory ex- amination of this book. The text treats first of the plan of the work, including the classification and preparation of the colors, of the scales adopted, and their designation and arrangement on the plates. Uuder "Color Names" the selection of the terms adopted is discussed, and the almost ridiculous chaos '.)f preseut color nomenclature is clearly shown. Under "Color Terms" our author defines some of th? most important terms used in the literature of color. Then follow the tables of percentages adopted as the standards in the present work; a list of the actual pigments used in the preparation of the fundamental pure colors; and an alpha- betical list of the colors represented on the plates, with their proper symbols. All the names of colors in the aulhor's original "No- ?nenclature of Colors for Naturalists" have, for the purpose of perpetuating these stand- ards, been adopted in this new book, and a list of such of these as are not represented on the plates is given, together with the sym- bols by which they may be designated. A list of so?ne of the most important books on the subject of color completes the text. The fifty-three plates constitute, of course, by far the m(Jst important part of the volume. The color samples, each 25 by 12.5 millimeters, are mounted on a background of neutral gray, which for this purpose has many advantages over a white page. They have been prepared with great care by an improved process which produces an even matt surface, much more satisfactorv for comparisons than a smooth or glossy color; and also insures absolute uni- forinity throughout the entire edition of the book. The colors are arranged on each plate in three vertical rows, each representing a cer- tain hue, together with three tints (rhixtures with definite percentages of white) and three
