152 A MANUAL OF THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. 
Numenius rostratus Gray, Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., Vol. XI., p. 194, March Ist, 1843, ex Latham 
MS. for Watling plate, basis of Latham’s Numenius arquatus var. = N. cyanopus Vieillot. 
Numenius rufescens Gould, Proc. Zool. Soc. (Lond.), 1862, p. 286, April Ist, 1863: Formosa. 
DistTRIBUTION.—Winter visitor to Australia, breeding in the northern hemisphere. 
Adult female—General colour of the upper-parts dark grey and brown, some 
of the feathers, particularly on the wings, margined with white ; the feathers of the 
back and scapulars dark brown margined with paler brown; rump, upper tail- 
coverts and tail regularly barred with dark brown and grey, the latter tipped with 
white ; lesser wing-coverts almost black with white or pale margins, medium and 
greater coverts somewhat paler ; bastard-wing and primary-coverts black ; primary- 
quills dark brown notched with white on the inner web, the first three uniform on 
the outer web, the remainder mottled with light-coloured spots on the outer web 
and tipped with white, the shafts straw coloured: secondaries brown notched on 
both webs with white ; head and hind-neck brown, the feathers margined with grey ; 
fore-head, lores, and sides of face minutely streaked with brown and white ; throat 
almost pure white; fore-neck and chest more coarsely streaked ; abdomen and 
under tail-coverts paler and more inclining to white and the shaft-streaks narrower ; 
some of the under tail-coverts narrowly barred with brown; axillaries and under 
wing-coverts barred with brown and white; bill dark brown, tip black, base of 
lower mandible flesh-white ; iris brown; tarsi and feet Jeaden-blue. Total length 
650 mm. ; culmen 187, wing 317, tail 122, tarsus 93. 
Adult male-—Similar to the adult female but smaller. 
Adult in summer-plumage.—Has distinctly rufescent edges to the feathers. 
Immature —Like the adult but with pale rufous edges to the feathers of the 
upper-surface, somewhat recalling the summer-plumage, but paler and easily recog- 
nisable by the smaller measurements, especially of the bill. The under-surface with 
the streaks more pronounced. 
Nestling in down.—Does not appear to have been described. 
Nest and Eggs Apparently undescribed. 
Breeds in southern parts of Eastern Siberia, as far west as Southern Baikal 
and Upper Olekina (tributary of the Lena) and as far north as about 56-57° N. on 
(Lena) Olekina. 
Distribution and forms —Fastern Siberia, migrating southwards to Australia in 
winter. No subspecies are known. 
Famity RECURVIROSTRID. 
This family consists of a group of Wading birds with long slender bills, long 
necks, and very long legs. Seebohm included all the species in his genus Himantopus, 
as he pointed out that the species were connected by various features. Thus the 
the members of that genus, as commonly and here restricted, have straight bills, no 
hind-toe, and small webs to their toes. Cladorhynchus has also a straight bill, but 
the toes are fully webbed and no hind-toe. Recurvirostra has the bill upturned, the 
toes fully webbed, and a hind-toe is present. In coloration, upon which Seebohm 
based his affinities, a similar range is noticeable. 
The straight-billed birds are called Stilts, and those with upturned bills Avocets ; 
they are very closely related, as some of the species of Avocet have straightish bills 
when immature. 
There appears to be little recorded as regards the anatomical characters of this 
family ; the peculiar slenderness of the lachrymals has been noted, as well as the 
vomer with the extremity excavate instead of pointed. The muscle formula of 
the leg is ABXY-+ and there are no intrinsic muscles to the syrinx which is of 
the tracheo-bronchial pattern. A comparison of the anatomy and osteology of the 
three Australian genera from nestling to adult would be very valuable. 
