188 RALLIDAG 
as China and Japan. In winter, it is abundant in India, 
North Africa, and the adjacent Islands. 
DESCRIPTIVE CHARACTERS. 
PLUMAGE. Adult male nuptial.—Back of the neck, back, 
wings, dark slate-grey ; throat, breast, abdomen, and flanks, 
dull black; wings crossed by a narrow white bar. 
Adult female nuptial.—Similar to the male plumage. 
Adult winter, male and female—Similar to the nuptial 
plumage. 
Immature, male and female—Breast and abdomen, 
greyish ; throat, impure white. 
Nestling.—Jet-black, with orange-red head varied with 
purple-blue. 
Brak. Pale pinkish-white ; the tip ivory-white ; ‘frontal 
plate,’ also white, with a smooth surface like polished ivory. 
Ferrer. Greenish; toes fringed on either side with a 
series of membranous lobes; such a form of foot being of 
great use when the bird is treading its way through reeds 
and sinking ooze, as well as when swimming. 
IribEs. Bright crimson. 
AVERAGE MEASUREMENTS. 
TOTAL LENGTH ... te fo wl) Une 
WING aa, ue acy OID La. 
BEAK ee Ae csi apa sess 
TARSO- METATARSUS es 
teres Di >< Samar 
Allied Species and Representative Forms.—F. cristata 1s 
the African representative. It has two bright red caruncles 
on the ‘ frontal plate.’ 
The North American Coot differs from our bird only in 
having a large amount of white under the tail. However, 
our identical bird has once reached Greenland (Saunders). 
