114 MANUAL OF PHILIPPINE BIRDS. 



Male. A narrow black collar on hind neck ; entire wings, their coverts, 

 and scapulars glossy black; rest of the plumage white. Bill and nails 

 black; legs and feet bright red, said to be pink in life. Length, about 

 350 ; wing, 220 ; tail, 77 ; exposed culmen, 59 ; tarsus, 126. 



Female. Smaller and the scapulars dark brown. Wing, 210; tail, 75 ; 

 exposed culmen, 58; tarsus, 110. 



"Young. Brown on the upper back and inner secondaries; the hind 

 neck, from the nape to the mantle, ashy gray, mottled with dusky sub- 

 terminal bars to the feathers; crown dull ashy gray; lores and fore 

 part of face white like the under surface of the body." (Sharpe.) 



The stilt, even at a considerable distance, is easily recognized by its 

 very long, slender, red legs. I observed a solitary individual in Malamaui 

 Island near Basilan and Celestino collected a number of specimens in 

 northern Mindanao. 



Subfamily TOTANINyE. 



Bill long, slender, usually straight, in some species gently curved; 

 tarsus scutellate both in front and behind except in Numenius which 

 has the back of tarsus reticulate and the bill very long and decurved; 

 toes slightly webbed at base. 



Genera. 



a 1 . Tarsus transversely scaled in front, reticulated behind; culmen more than 65 



mm.; bill decurved _ Numenius (p. 114) 



a 3 . Tarsus transversely scaled both in front and behind. 



6 1 . Bill decurved; culmen less than 50 mm Mesoscolopax (p. 119) 



6*. Bill straight or slightly upturned. 



c 1 . Much larger ; culmen more than 70 mm. ; bill recurved and slightly exceed- 

 ing tail Limosai p. 119) 



c 8 . Much smaller ; culmen less than 65 mm. 



d 1 . Culmen equal to, and usually greater than, middle toe with claw. 

 *. Tarsus longer than middle toe with claw. 



f 1 . Tarsus about one and one-half times the length of middle toe with 

 claw. 



g 1 . Culmen not recurved Totanus (p. 122) 



g*. Culmen slightly recurved Glottis (p. 129) 



f. Tarsus but little greater than middle toe with claw. 



g 1 . Culmen slightly recurved Terekia (p. 127) 



g*. Culmen not recurved. 



A 1 . Axillars not uniform white. 



t 1 . Axillars gray Heteractitis (p. 124) 



i 2 . Axillars brown barred with white Helodromas (p. 123) 



h*. Axillars pure white Actitis (p. 126) 



d a . Culmen shorter than middle toe with claw, about equal to toe without 

 claw Rhyacophilus (p. 130) 



Genus NUMENIUS Brisson, 1760. 



Back of tarsus covered with small hexagonal scales. Large wading 

 birds with long legs; bill very long and decurved, tip of upper mandible 

 blunt and projecting beyond the lower mandible. 



