AMERICAN SWAN. 677 



lated as far as the second joint, the middle toe nearly as far ; 

 the inner with twenty, the middle toe thirty-three, the outer 

 twenty-five scutella ; the interdigital webs full, reticulate, 

 the marginal web of the inner toe slightly bilobate. The 

 claws are of moderate size, strong, arched, compressed, con- 

 vex above, rather acute, that of the middle toe with the 

 inner edge dilated and the tip rounded. 



A portion of the forehead, and the space between the bill 

 and the eyes, denuded. The plumage moderate or rather 

 full, dense, soft, and elastic ; on the head and neck the 

 feathers oblong, obtuse, blended, and very soft ; on the 

 lower parts rather small, much curved, ovato-oblong ; on 

 the upper parts larger, broader, and little curved ; the sca- 

 pulars large. The wings are very long, of moderate breadth, 

 convex ; the humerus and cubitus proportionally longer than 

 the digital portion ; the quills thirty-five, together with 

 eight numerals ; the primaries of moderate length, decurved, 

 the outer three strongly sinuate on the inner web, the second 

 longest, exceeding the first by eight-twelfths of an inch, but 

 not more than half a twelfth longer than the the third ; the 

 secondaries of moderate breadth and rounded. The tail is 

 very short, rounded, of twenty stiffish, rounded feathers, of 

 which the lateral are an inch and eight-twelfths shorter than 

 the medial. 



The bill is black, as is the bare space on the fore part of 

 the head, with the exception of an orange-yellow oblong 

 patch from the anterior angle of the eye, nearly an inch in 

 length ; the erect sides of the lower mandible and the inside 

 of the mouth yellowish flesh-colour. The iris brown. The 

 feet and claws black. The plumage entirely pure white. 



Length to end of tail 54 inches ; wing from flexure 252^ ; 

 tail 7^ ; bill along the ridge, including the bare space 4, 

 from its tip to the eye 4^ ; hind toe ^-, its claw -^ > second 

 toe 8^, its claw \% ; third toe 4^, its claw Yk > ft> ul 'th toe 

 4 T 8 ^-, its claw if. 



Dimensions of an individual described by Dr. Sharp- 

 less : — Length 54 ; bill from the edge of the forehead 4|, 

 from the eye 5 ; extent of wings 86 ; wing from flexure 23 ; 

 middle toe 6. 



