I20 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I50 



KEY TO SPECIES OF CICONIIDAE 



Smaller, wing less than 500 mm. long; bill decurved toward end, with the tip 

 rounded Wood ibis, Mycteria americana, p. 120 



Larger, wing more than 600 mm. long ; bill straight to slightly recurved toward 

 end, with the tip pointed Jabiru, Jabiru mycteria, p. 120 



JABIRU MYCTERIA (Lichtenstein) : Jabiru; Garzon Soldado 



Ciconia mycteria Lichtenstein, Abh. K. Akad. Wiss. Berlin, Phys. KI., 1816-1817 

 (1819), p. 163. (Northeastern Brazil.) 



Of very large size, with heavy, recurved bill ; head and neck bare, 

 except for a tuft of downy feathers on the nape. 



Description. — A meter 200 mm. to a meter and a half tall ; wing 

 630-650, bill 305-335 mm. Adult, head and neck bare of feathers; 

 upper part of neck black, lower third orange red ; plumage white. 



Immature, dark gray, or brownish ; in older stage with underparts, 

 tail, upper tail coverts, and rump, white. 



Casual straggler. 



The only published record is that of a male shot by Hasso von 

 Wedel at Cricamola, Bocas del Toro, August 11, 1927 (Peters, Bull. 

 Mus. Comp. Zool., vol. 71, 1931, p. 304). 



Baldomiro Moreno, a local hunter, has described one to me that 

 he saw on the La Jagua marshes, his only view of this bird. The 

 species is found widely from southern Mexico to northern Argentina. 



MYCTERIA AMERICANA Linnaeus: Wood Ibis; Gaban 



Mycteria americana Linnaeus, Syst, Nat., ed. 10, vol. 1, 1758, p. 150. (North- 

 eastern Brazil.) 



Large size, coupled with bare head and upper neck, and decurved 

 bill, distinguish this from other wading birds found in Panama. 



Description. — Length 860 mm. to nearly a meter. Adult, white; 

 flight feathers and tail black, with a sheen of dark green (seen with 

 the bird in hand) ; head and neck without feathers. 



Immature, head and neck scantily feathered, grayish brown; rest 

 of plumage like adult but duller in color. 



Measurements. — Males (6 from Florida, Mexico, and Panama), 

 wing 453-492 (476), tail 155-166 (158), culmen from base 215-235 

 (227), tarsus 194-213 (203) mm. 



Females (6 from Mexico, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, and 

 Colombia), wing 435-455 (446), tail 143-150 (148), culmen from base 

 190-205 (196), tarsus 175-192 (183) mm. 



Resident. Seen regularly in extensive marsh areas in the lowlands ; 



