RED-NECKED AVOCET. 156 



a brown spot on the outer web, the long innermost secondaries black like the 

 scapulars ; tail, middle feathers pale grey, outer feathers grey on outer webs, white 

 on inner ones ; breast chestnut, the feathers of which have white bases followed by 

 blackish and very broadly tipped with chestnut, so that the white of the fore-neck 

 and the chestnut on the breast is divided by a narrow blackish line, the feathers 

 on the middle of the abdomen dark brown, some of which are suffused with chestnut ; 

 bill black ; iris dark brown ; tarsi and feet yellow. Total length 405 mm. ; culmen 

 69, wing 193, tail 80, tarsus 88. 



Adult female. Similar to the male. 



Young male (bird of the year}. Differs from the adult in the entire absence of 

 the chestnut, or dark pattern, on the breast and middle of the abdomen, these parts 

 being white like the rest of the under-surface ; upper wing-coverts very narrowly 

 edged with white. 



The first stage of advance towards the breeding-plumage is shown in specimens 

 which have the chestnut pattern on the breast and the dark patch on the middle 

 of the abdomen just faintly outlined on the white under-surface, while others demon- 

 strate more clearly the colour of these parts, which can be seen by the chestnut, 

 more especially on the sides of the breast, which is still much intermixed with white. 



Other specimens also show the advance of the chestnut and the dark portion 

 on the middle of the abdomen ; the white, so prevalent in the first one mentioned 

 above, is fast disappearing and the next stage appears to be the fully adult. 



Nestling. Undescribed . 



Nest. A rough construction placed in a low salt bush. 



Eggs. Clutch, four ; the ground-colour varies from an olive-brown to creamy- 

 brown, irregularly spotted and blotched with black, in shape oval but slightly 

 pointed ; axis 44-48, diameter 29-33. 



Distribution and forms. Confined to Australia, and at present through lack 

 of good series no subspecies admitted. 



Genus RECURVIROSTRA. 



Recurvirostra Linne, Syst. Nat., 10th ed., p. 151, Jan. 1st, 1758. Type (by monotypy)r 



Recurvirostra avosetta Linne. 



Avocetta Brisson, Ornith., Vol. I., p. 60, Vol. VI., p. 537, 1760. Type (by tautonymy) : 



Avocetta = Recurvirostra avosetta Linne. 



In the genus Recurvirostra the bill is long and recurved, the feet are fully webbed, 

 and a hind -toe is present ; otherwise it resembles Himantopus. The bill is very 

 long, somewhat flexible, flattened, then tapering with a strong upward turn and 

 the tip again decurved ; the nostrils a very narrow slit in a flat, short groove ; the 

 culmen is almost as long as the metatarsus and equal to the tail. The wings are 

 long and pointed, and more than twice the length of the tail, which is square. The 

 metatarsus is reticulated and the toes are fully webbed, and there is a hind -toe. 



108. Recurvirostra no vaehollandige. RED-NECKED AVOCET. 



Gould, Vol. VI., pi. 27 (pt. ix.), Dec. 1st, 1842. Mathews, Vol. III., pt. 2, pi. 143, May 2nd, 

 1913. 



Recurvirostra novcehollandice Vieillot, Nouv. Diet. d'Hist. Nat., Vol. III., p. 103, Sept. 14th, 



1816 : " Nouvelle Hollande " = Victoria. 



Recurvirostra rubricollis Temminck, Manuel d'Orn., 2nd ed., Vol. II., p. 592, Oct. 21st, 1820 : 



Victoria. 



Recurvirostra novcehollandice stalkeri Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 220, Jan. 31st,. 



1912 : Alexandra, Northern Territory. 



DISTRIBUTION. Australia generally and Tasmania. 



