205 



NAKED-BILLED VINAGO. 



Vinago nudirostris, SWAINS. 



Head, neck, and body beneath, yellowish-green ; bill thick, 

 red, and very naked at the base ; nostrils placed in the 

 middle ; shoulders vinaceous ; under tail-covers cinnamon ; 

 interscapulars cinereous. 



Columba Abyssinica, fern. ? Auctorum. Le Columba a epau- 

 lettes Violettes, fern. ? Ois. tfAf. 6. 277. 



HAVING already stated our reasons for considering 



this as a distinct species, we need only describe its 



plumage. The size of 



the bird is smaller, but 



the bill is much larger 



than in the supposed 



male ; the nostrils are 



placed in the middle, 



so that the soft part of 



the bill, or that in which 



the nostrils are placed, 



is longer than the hard 



or terminal portion ; the base of the bill is also much 



broader than it is high, so that, for a pigeon, it 



might be called a depressed bill ; this part is covered 



by a skin and is of a bright red, even in the preserved 



specimens. 



