PHAETON. 733 



Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 1173; Murray, Vert. ZooL, Sind, p. 327; Oates, B 

 Br. Burm. ii. p. 226. Phaeton setherius (Linn.), apud. Hume^Str. F.\. 

 p. 286 ; ii. p. 323. The SHORT-TAILED TROPIC BIRD. 



"A broad, conspicuous black crescent in front of the eye, and a narrow 

 black line from the gape to nostrils and nostrils to culmen, dividing the 

 feathers from the bill ; the whole forehead, front part of the crown, ear coverts 

 and entire lower parts, including wing lining and axillaries, pure white ; a 

 black line from the posterior angle of the eye, running round the back of the 

 nape, where it forms a more or less conspicuous half collar ; hind crown and 

 nape inside the half collar white, each feather with a triangular black bar near 

 the tips ; carpal joint of wing, four or five posterior primaries, all the secon- 

 daries, the primary coverts, except those of the first five quills, the greater and 

 median coverts pure white ; winglet, greater coverts, shafts and outer webs of 

 the first five primaries, together with a narrow stripe along the shaft of the 

 inner web, black ; the extreme tips and inner webs of these feathers white ; 

 tertiaries and their greater coverts black, narrowly margined on the exterior 

 webs and tipped with white ; the lesser secondary coverts similar ; the entire 

 back, rump, scapulars, and upper tail coverts white, closely barred with black, 

 the bars being slightly cuspidate on the upper back, and the longest scapulars 

 almost devoid of barring; tail feathers white, their bases black shafted, and 

 the lateral feather mostly with an arrow-head bar or spot near the tip ; irides 

 deep brown ; legs and hallux and its web white, tinged bluish and creamy 

 yellow ; rest of feet and claws black. 



"Male Length, excluding elongated tail feathers, 16-85 to 17*8 inches; 

 central feathers project beyond the rest of the tail 3 to 5*9; expanse 37 to 

 39-5 ; tail from vent, including elongated feathers, 7*5 to 10-3, ; wing 10*75 to 

 ir8 ; bill at front 2'2 to 2-45 ; tarsus i'o to 1-13 ; mid-toeand claw 1-55 to 

 1*8. Female Length, 18-05 exclusive of elongated feathers, which project 

 4 inches beyond the others ; expanse 39 ; tail from vent, including elongated 

 feathers, 9'O; wing 117 ; bill at front 2-4 ; tarsus i." 



This is Mr. Hume's description of specimens secured by him in the Gulf of 

 Oman on the Mekran Coast ; whether it is the immature of P. cethereus, or a 

 new species, is yet a moot question. Captain Butler, in 1877 (Str.F.v. 

 p. 302) also secured two specimens on the Mekran Coast between Oormara 

 and Gwadur, and these, Mr. Hume says, are precisely similar to the four 

 specimens secured in the Bay of Bengal. Mr. Davison also observed it at the 

 extreme southern point of Tenasserim and off Cape Negrais. 



Family. FREGATID^E. 



Wings highly developed. The single species known to occur in India lives 

 almost entirely in the aar, taking its prey on the wing. Form and habits 

 Raptorial. 



