WOOD TATLER. 347 



very slender ; the tibia bare for ten-twelfths of an inch ; the 

 tarsus compressed, with thirty-six anterior scutella. The 

 anterior toes are long, very slender, and marginate ; the 

 outer longer than the inner, and connected with the middle 

 toe by a pretty large basal web ; the hind toe very small 

 and elevated, with eight scutella ; the second with twenty- 

 five, the third with thirty-two, the fourth with thirty scu- 

 tella. The claws are small, decimate, arcuate, compressed, 

 rather blunt. 



The plumage is extremely soft, on the back and wings 

 slightly glossed. The wings, which when closed extend 

 nearly to the end of the tail, are narrow, with twenty-five 

 quills, of which the first is longest. The tail is rather short 

 and doubly emarginate, the outermost feather being a little 

 longer than several of the rest, but nearly a quarter of an 

 inch shorter than the two middle feathers, which are rather 

 pointed. 



The bill is dusky, tinged with green in its basal half; 

 the eyes dusky ; the feet greenish-grey. The upper part of 

 the head is greyish-brown, the feathers edged with greyish- 

 white ; a broad streak of white from the bill over the eye ; a 

 dusky loral band; the neck all round greyish-white, streaked 

 with greyish-brown. The back, scapulars, and inner secon- 

 daries are dark brown, somewhat glossed with purple ; the 

 feathers edged with white and black spots, the former larger 

 than those of Totanus ochropus. The quills, primary and 

 secondary coverts, alula, and outer small coverts blackish- 

 brown ; the first quill with its shaft white. The lower 

 surface of the quills is a little paler ; the lower coverts 

 dusky, margined with white ; the axillar feathers and those 

 of the upper part of the sides white, narrowly and irregu- 

 larly barred with brown, the bars not angularly disposed, 

 nor nearly so broad, as in Totanus ochropus. The throat is 

 greyish-white ; the breast, abdomen, and lower tail-coverts 

 white, the latter with a medial brown line ; the hind part of 

 the rump and the upper tail-coverts white, the latter marked 

 along the shafts with brown. The tail is white, barred with 

 dusky in its whole length, there being eight dark bars on 

 the outer webs of all the feathers, seven on the inner webs 



