Ornithological Literature

[...]there is a list of species reported from Colombia's offshore islands. Part II, Urban Raptors, takes a species-by-chapter approach to describing our current knowledge of 8 exemplary birds of prey that occupy urban habitats. Since the book is almost exclusively composed of research conducted in the US, I found it fascinating to read about the Powerful Owl of Australia in one of the case studies, a reminder that raptors are occupying urban landscapes around the world, and that the theories and conclusions of this book apply equally outside of the US. Because I have spent many years trying to trace type specimens of Mathews's names, many of which are now in AMNH, I am familiar with his eccentricities, but less familiar with his personal history. Mathews's major publications and his careful bibliographic work are discussed as are his 8 checklists. Because of its extensive synonymies and careful dating, the 2-volume Systema Avium Australasianarum: A Systematic List of the Birds of the Australasian Region, 1927, 1930, published by the British Ornithologists' Union, remains the most important.