PLOTUS. 



741 



Gen. PlotUS. Lin. 



Bill long, straight, slender; second and third quills longest; nostrils basal, 

 covered by a shield ; tail long and rounded. 







Plotus melanogaster. 



1459. Plotus melanogaster (P*.) JW., B. Ind. Hi. p. 865, 



No. 1008; Hume, Nests and Eggs Ind. B. p. 66 1 ; Sir. F. vol. i. p. 469; 

 id., Str. F. i. p. 194 ; Blyth, B. Burm. p. 165 ; Legge, B. Ceylon^ p. 1194; 

 Hume and Dav., Sir. F. vi. p. 496; Oates, Str. F. x. p. 248; Murray -, 

 Hdbk., Zool.y &c. Sind.y p. 249; id., Vert. Zool. Sind t p. 332. Anhinga 

 melanogaster, Penn.^ Ind. Zool., p. 27, pi. 12 (Si'li, Sind). The INDIAN 

 SNAKE BIRD. 



Head, nape and neck brown, the feathers edged with pale ferruginous ; 

 back of the neck slightly darker ; chin and throat white, also a line from 

 below the eye to half way down the neck, and a narrow streak from the 

 base of the bill ; back and entire under surface glossy black ; primaries, 

 secondaries, tertiaries, scapulars and wing coverts black, very slightly glossed 



