292 LOBIPES HYPERBOREUS. 



Tins species having come under my observation only 

 once in winter, I shall first describe its appearance in 

 summer. It is inferior in size to the Dunlin, but nearly of 

 the same form, though rather more slender. Being much 

 more numerous with us than the Grey Phalarope, I have 

 had opportunities of examining many specimens. 



Male in Summer. — Body rather slender; neck rather 

 long ; head small, and much rounded above. Bill a little 

 longer than the head, very slender, depressed, tapering ; the 

 ridge convex, but flattened at the base ; the grooves on both 

 mandibles extending to more than three-fourths ; the tips 

 attenuated, the upper slightly deflected. The mouth is very 

 narrow, having a breadth of only two-twelfths and a half; 

 the tongue ten-twelfths long, extremely slender, horny, 

 channelled above, tapering to a point. The legs are of 

 moderate length ; the tarsus compressed, thin-edged ante- 

 riorly, with about twenty scutella. The hind toe is ex- 

 tremely small, a little elevated, with a small inferior mem- 

 branous lobe ; the anterior toes slender, webbed at the base, 

 and having their margins expanded into crenate lobes ; on 

 the second toe are two internal and one external lobe ; on 

 the third two internal and two external ; on the fourth one 

 internal and four external. The claw r s are extremely small, 

 much curved, compressed, and pointed. 



The plumage is very soft and blended; the feathers of 

 the back, and especially the scapulars, elongated. The 

 wings are long and pointed ; the first quill longest, the 

 second scarcely shorter, the other primaries rapidly gradu- 

 ated ; the inner secondaries tapering and elongated, one of 

 them being nearly as long as the outer primary when the 

 wing is closed. The tail is rather short, and much rounded. 

 The bill is black ; the iris dusky ; the feet dark bluish - 

 grey ; the claws black. The upper part and sides of the 

 head, with the hind-neck, blackish-grey ; the rest of the 

 upper parts greyish-black ; the sides and fore part of the neck 

 light red ; some of the feathers of the back and the scapulars 

 broadly margined with yellowish-red. The wing-coverts and 

 quills are greyish-black ; the tips of the larger small coverts 



