COLLARED PRATINCOLE. 445 



already referred to, writes, Pratincolam antea non vidi ; 

 ad Grallas spectat et proprii generis est. This species has 

 also been observed at Cairo, Smyrna, Trebizond ; and 

 in the country about the Caucasus it was seen by M. 

 Menetries in considerable flocks : the birds squatted close 

 to the ground, with outstretched wings, and allowed a near 

 approach. The Pratincole is also found in Tartary, but 

 is said not to go farther north in that direction than 

 latitude 53. 



The beak is curved, and almost black, and Mr. Bullock 

 says, that whilst living, the edges of both mandibles, and 

 the base of the lower one, were bright scarlet orange ; the 

 irides light brown ; the head, the neck behind, the back, 

 scapulars, wing-coverts and tertials, nearly uniform clove 

 brown ; primaries nearly black ; upper tail-coverts white ; 

 tail very much forked, the feathers white at the base, 

 the other part dark brownish black ; the outer feather 

 on each side as long again as those in the middle ; the 

 chin white ; the throat pale buff, with a crescentic line of 

 black ascending to each eye ; breast brownish buff ; 

 belly, thighs and under tail-coverts white ; axillary plume, 

 and under wing-coverts bay; the legs reddish purple 

 brown. 



In the young bird the clove brown feathers of the back, 

 and the wing-coverts, the secondaries and tertials, have 

 pale-reddish brown margins ; the tail-feathers shorter, and 

 much less forked ; throat pale brown, the crescentic collar 

 indicated by dark brown spots ; breast varied with two 

 shades of brown ; belly, and under surface of the body, and 

 tail feathers, greyish white. 



Females are said to resemble the males. The whole 

 length of an adult bird near ten inches. From the carpal 

 joint to the end of the first quill-feather, seven inches. 



