30 2 APPENDIX. 



"5th. The legs ui the Fhxmingo are much longer, and for the 

 greater part bare, whereas in our bird they are covered with 

 feathers pretty nearly as far as the tarsus. 



" 6th. The Flamingo has much shorter fore -toes, united by a 

 swimming-membrane, and an extremely small hind-toe, whereas 

 in our bird, both according to the figure and to the description, 

 the toes are extraordinarily long, and quite free. 



" 7th. The colour of the Flamingo is in tlie young grey, in the 

 old niore or less generally red, and never white, as in our bird. 



" 8th, and lastly, the whole of Strickland's supposition fails, 

 seeing that, as we have mentioned above, Leguat knew very well 

 what sort of appearance a Flamingo had. 



" For ourselves, we do not hesitate a moment to declare that this 

 Ge'ant of Leguat's was a Waterhen, and this for the following- 

 reasons : — 



" 1st. This bird has the huhiHis of the Waterhen to such a 

 degree that anybody who has a little experience in the recognition 

 of animal-forms will take it for one. 



" 2ud. The extraordinarily long toes argue to the same conclu- 

 sion. 



" 3rd. The form of the tail, with the under-coverts reaching to 

 its end, and its erect attitude, is exactly as in the Waterhens. 



" -ith. Leguat's figure shows distinctly that the upper mandible 

 was prolonged in a kind of rounded plate, which extended over 

 the forehead and eyes, just as we see in the typical Waterhens, 

 namely, Gallinula, Porphyrio, and Fulica. 



" 5th, and lastly, Leguat's expressions, 'gibier' and 'assez bon', 

 can also be applied to the Waterhens. 



" When we have agreed that this bird belongs to the family of 

 Waterhens — and I really do not know in what other group we 

 could, with any probability, place it — then arises the question, 

 Under what genus of this family could we more positively 

 arrange it? That it cannot be regarded as a Coot {Fulica), its 

 toes, not bordered by lobed membranes, show. It should, 

 therefore, be assigned rather to the genus Porphyrio or Gallinula ; 

 for one could not account it a Rail {Jiallus), as it carries its tail 

 erect and has a frontal plate, any more than a Crane (Gms), which 



