FREGATIDM: FRIGATES; MEN-O'-WAR. 969 



ANHIN'GA. (South American name, meaning snake-bird. Compare Portuguese anhina, 

 Lat. anguina, snaky, serpentine.) Darters. Character as above. Plotus of most authors, 

 as of all former editions of the Key. 



A. anhiu'ga. (Fig. G79.) Anhixga. American Darter. Black Darter. Black- 

 bellied Darter. White-bellied Darter (young). Snake-bird. Water-turkey. 

 Adult (J: Glossy greenish-black on head, neck, and body; wings and tail plain black, latter 

 tipped with whitish, fonner with a broad silver-gray band formed by greater and median 

 coverts ; lesser wing-coverts spotted, and scapulars striped with silver-gray. These silvery 

 markings variable ; greater coverts mostly of this color, with only a part of their inner webs 

 black; on the other coverts, inner secondaries, and long lanceolate scapulars the silvery is a 

 sharp median spot or stripe. In breeding plumage, back of neck with a sort of mane of long 

 black feathers, and along this a lateral series of filamentous plumes of a purplish-ash or brown- 

 ish-white color. Adult 9 • Differs decidedly ; jugulum and breast fawn color, sharply bordered 

 behind with rich chestnut-brown ; feathers of upper back with brown edges and white centres ; 

 head and neck grayish -brown varied with rufous, buff, and whitish, and with scattered series 

 of pale filaments. In both sexes iris red, ranging from carmine to pink ; bill yellow, with 

 dusky greenish ridge and tip ; bare skin about eyes livid green ; sac orange ; feet dusky olive 

 and yellow ; webs yellow ; claws blackish. Some of the inner secondaries are crimped cross- 

 wise on outer webs, like the middle tail-feathers. Young : Like 9 > but duller black ; silvery 

 markings unformed; no chestnut breast-band; under parts simply dull gray; primaries and 

 secondaries with whitish margins toward ends ; no crimps. Nestlings covered with buff down. 

 In full dress this is a very stylish bird, as picturesque in plumage as it is peculiar in form, atti- 

 tude, and action. Length of J 9 nearly or about 3G.00; extent nearly 48.00; wing 13.00- 

 14.00; tail lO.OO-lLOO; tarsus 1.25-L50; culmen 3.25-3.50. Tropical and sub-tropical 

 America ; in North America, S. Atlantic and Gulf .States, common ; N. along coast to North 

 Carolina, and up the Mississippi valley to Illinois and Kansas; New Mexico; accidental in 

 England near Poole, June, 1851 (Zool. pp. 3601, 3654 ; Newton's Diet. p. 882). Nest bulky, 

 placed on trees and bushes over water of secluded swamps or bayous, where Herons also con- 

 gregate to breed, built of sticks, leaves, roots, n)oss, etc. ; eggs 2-5, oftenest 3-4, 2.60 X 1-25, 

 like Cormorant eggs in color and texture, but narrower and more elongate ; laid April-June. 

 Young fed in the nest by regurgitation like Cormorants ; and in many other habits, such as 

 that of sunning themselves with drooping wings, the aflRnity of these birds is shown as plainly 

 as it is by physical characters. {Plotus anhinga of all former editions of the Key.) 



Family FREGATID^ : Frigates; Men-o'-War. 



(Formerly Tachvpetid.^^..) 



Bill most like that of a Cormorant, longer than head, epignathous, stout, straight, wider 

 than high at base, thence gradually compressed to the strongly hooked extremity, where the 

 under as well as upper mandible is decurvcd. Culmen rounded, with lengthwise outline con- 

 cave to the hook; culminicorn divided from latericorn by a deep groove, which forks at the 

 unguicorn. Nostrils basal, very small, linear, almost entirely closed, in a long narrow groove. 

 Gular sac small, but caj)able of considerable distension. Wings exceedingly long and pointed, 

 of about 34 rcmiges, of which the 10 primaries are very powerful, with stout quadrangular 

 shafts; 1st primary mucii the lougest ; upper and middle portion of wings trreatly lengthened, 

 and the fore arm about a third longer than the humerus. Tail very long, deeply forked, of 12 

 strong feathers. Feet exceedingly small ; tarsus extraordinarily short, featliered ; tnrso-jneta- 

 tarsal bone .shorter than some of the digital phalanges, which latter have an unusual ratio of 

 kngth.s ; webbing restricted, that between inner and next too very slight ; middle too much 



