LONG-TAILED MUFFLIN. 455 



prominent line. The tongue is linear, subsagittate at the base, 

 abruptly terminated, with four bristles. The oesophagus is an 

 inch and a twelfth long ; the stomach roundish, compressed, 

 five twelfths in length, moderately muscular, with a longitu- 

 dinally rugous epithelium ; the intestine four inches long, 

 averaging one twelfth in width ; the coeca very small, and the 

 cloaca globular. 



The tarsi are rather slender, much compressed ; the hind toe 

 with its claw longer than the third with its claw ; the first 

 with eight, the second with eight, the third with ten, the fourth 

 with nine scutella. The nostrils are round, a quarter of a 

 twelfth in diameter. The eyelids are broadly margined with 

 a bare crenate skin. The plumage is extremely soft and tufty; 

 and the bristle-pointed feathers at the base of the bill lie over 

 so as to conceal the nostrils. The wings are rather long, con- 

 cave, rounded, of eighteen quills ; the first half an inch long, 

 the second four and a half twelfths shorter than the third, 

 which is a twelfth and a half shorter than the fourth, the 

 latter being a third of a twelfth shorter than the fifth, which 

 is the longest, the second and ninth about equal. The tail is 

 very long, straight, graduated ; the lateral feathers an inch and 

 nine twelfths long, eight twelfths shorter than the next, and 

 an inch and nine twelfths shorter than the middle feathers, 

 which, when complete, are longest. 



The bill is black ; the iris brown, the bare margins of the 

 eyelids broad and of a reddish colour ; the feet and claws dusky. 

 The lower parts are white, the sides and abdomen tinged with 

 rose-colour. The fore part and crown of the head are white ; 

 a broad band of black extends from over the eye down the 

 neck ; the back is black, the feathers along its sides and on the 

 rump tipped with light red. The quills are brownish-black, 

 the secondaries broadly edged with white. The tail is black, 

 but the three lateral feathers are w^hite on the outer web and 

 part of the inner at the end, the white of the third feather ex- 

 tending only halfway down. 



Length to end of tail 5}° inches; extent of wings 6j% ; bill 

 along the ridge ^%, along the edge of lower mandible j% ; 

 wing from flexure 2j% ; tail Sy'^ ; tarsus ^^^ ; first toe j-^g, 



