352 ACTITIS HYPOLEUCOS. 



legs and neck longish, its head small and compressed. The 

 bill is not much longer than the head, and in all respects 

 very closely resembles that of the bird named above, being 

 straight, slender, compressed, laterally grooved on both man- 

 dibles for two-thirds of its length, soft and flexible. The 

 tongue is linear, channelled above, emarginate and papillate 

 at the base, with the tip pointed. The fauces are very nar- 

 row ; the oesophagus three inches long, and two-twelfths in 

 diameter ; the gizzard somewhat elliptical, eight-twelfths of 

 an inch long, its muscles moderately large, its inner coat 

 rugous ; the intestine fourteen inches in length, and varying 

 in diameter from two and a half to one and a half twelfths. 



The eyes are of moderate size ; the aperture of the ear 

 elliptical, and two and a half twelfths long; the nostrils 

 linear, pervious, and only one-twelfth long. The tibia is 

 bare for four-twelfths of an inch ; the tarsus has numerous 

 anterior and posterior scutella. The hind toe is very small 

 and elevated ; the anterior toes are webbed at the base, the 

 inner web much smaller, flattened beneath, and marginate. 

 The claws are small, compressed, and blunt. 



The plumage is soft, blended, glossy and somewhat com- 

 pact on the upper parts. The wings are long ; the prima- 

 ries narrowish, the first longest, the second almost equal ; 

 the secondaries longish, rounded and acuminate, the inner 

 tapering. The tail is of moderate length, and considerably 

 rounded. 



The bill is dusky above, brownish-grey beneath. The 

 irides are brown. The feet greyish, tinged with green ; the 

 claws black. The upper part of the head and the hind neck 

 are brownish-grey ; an indistinct whitish line passes over the 

 eve, and the loral space is dusky. The rest of the upper 

 parts glossy greenish-brown, transversely banded and un- 

 dulated with dark brown. Some feathers on the edge of the 

 wing, the margins of the alular feathers, the tips of the pri- 

 mary and secondary coverts are white. A bar of the same 

 colour crosses the wing, including the inner margins of the 

 primaries, excepting the first, appearing on the first secon- 

 dary, and reflecting along the tips of the secondaries, one or 

 two of which are entirely white. The lateral tail-feathers 



