PHAETHOff. 351 



? Phaeton setherius, apud Jllyth, J. A. S. B. xv, p. 374 ; id. Cat. 

 p. 296 ; id. Ibis, 1867, p. 178. 



Coloration. White, often tinged with rosy ; a patch in front of 

 the eye and a small streak behind, the shafts of the primaries and 

 tail-feathers, except at the ends, broad shaft-stripes to the later 

 secondaries and tertiaries, black ; there are broad grey shaft - 

 stripes on the long flank-feathers ; the long middle tail-feathers 

 have black shafts and red webs. 



Young birds have the upper parts barred with black. 



Bill yellow ; legs and basal portions of feet yellow ; rest of feet 

 black. Tail-feathers 16. 



Length 33 ; tail 19 ; wing 13 ; tarsus 1*25 ; bill from gape 

 3-25. 



Distribution. Tropical portions of the Pacific and Indian Oceans. 

 This species is said to have been repeatedly obtained or seen in the 

 Bay of Bengal, and as Hume described an undoubted specimen 

 which he said came from the area, I include the species. There is 

 no specimen from Indian seas in the British Museum, and it is 

 certain that P. indicus has been on several occasions taken for the 

 young of the present form. 



