78 (EDICNEMUS CREPITANS. 



compressed, and much rounded above. The bill is much 

 shorter than the head, stout, straight, as broad as high at the 

 base, compressed toward the end, pointed ; the upper man- 

 dible with the dorsal line straight, for half its length, then 

 gently deflected, the ridge convex, gradually narrowed, the 

 sides convex, the edges sharp and inflected, the tip rather 

 acute ; the nasal sinus large and covered with a bare mem- 

 brane ; the lower mandible with the outline of the crura 

 straight, a little deflected toward their junction, the dorsal 

 line ascending and somewhat convex, the edges inflected, the 

 tip acute. 



The nostrils medial, linear, in the lower edge of the 

 membrane. The eyes large, as is the aperture of the ears. 

 The legs are long and slender ; the tibia bare for a third of 

 its length, and reticulate ; the tarsus compressed, covered 

 with hexagonal scales ; the toes short, scutellate, the middle 

 toe with twenty-five scutella, the outer much longer than 

 the inner, and connected with the third by a basal mem- 

 brane, which margins both nearly to the end. The claws 

 are small, compressed, slightly arched, rather acute. 



The plumage is moderately full, soft, blended, on the 

 upper parts rather compact ; the feathers of the head and 

 neck small, ovato-oblong, of the other parts broad and 

 rounded. The wings are long and broad, of twenty-five 

 quills ; the primaries tapering, the second longest, and ex- 

 ceeding the first by a quarter of an inch ; the inner secon- 

 daries elongated. The tail is rather short, much rounded or 

 graduated, of twelve broad, rounded feathers. 



The bill from the base to the middle is greenish-yellow, to 

 the end black. The iris yellow, the bare space around and 

 behind the eye greenish-yellow. The feet are yellow, the 

 claws blackish-brown. The upper part of the head and the 

 hind neck are light yellowish-brown, streaked with black. 

 On the back and wings, the feathers are light brownish- 

 yellow, each with a medial brownish-black streak. The 

 primary quills are black, the first and second with a large 

 white patch beyond the middle ; the secondary coverts termi- 

 nally margined with yellowish-white ; the smaller coverts at 

 the anterior edge of the humerus brownish-white. The tail- 



