508 OBSERVATIONS ON THE PELICAN 
black in all stages, but as they get older they are closely: 
frosted over with silvery grey, especially on the outer webs, 
and more so on those nearer the scapulars, making them at a 
distance look almost white. 
Tertiaries are also of a dirty pale brown in the young bird, 
changing into black in the adult, with the tips slightly frosted 
over with silver grey. I have attached to this paper full mea- 
surements of all the specimens preserved, both of this species 
and of the first kind; also the colors of the soft parts of each 
specimen sent to Mr. Hume. From these it will be seen that 
the bills of the females range from 12°25 to 13°5 ; their wings 
from 24:00 to 26:25 ; and their tarsus from 450 to 462. The 
bills of the males range from 15°25 to 17:21; wings, 27°25 to 
28°50; and the tarsus from 5°50 to 5°75. 
In conclusion I would again allude to the extraordinary 
paucity of females, and also to the fact of the males and females 
keeping in separate flocks; for instance, out of a flock of seven 
that I found feeding in a small pool of water and got a 
‘‘ family” shot at, six proved to be females, the seventh escaped ; 
to this flock belong specimens Nos. 3 and 4. 
Again for three days, or rather mornings, I followed one flock 
of Pelican, which roughly numbered over 1,000. Two of the 
mornings I got “ family” shots, and the third I bagged three, 
altogether in the three mornings getting 38 Pelican, all 
of which I sexed most carefully and roughly measured and 
found them all males, with their testes all more or less showing 
signs of breeding. None of these birds had bills less than 
15°25 or wings less than 27:25. To this flock belong specimens 
No. 13. to No. 16 inclusive. Again in another place, some 12 
miles. away, there was a flock of about 300. I failed to geta 
family shot at these, but got a right and left as they flew over 
my head, dropping two. Both of these proved females, one 
(specimen No, 12) having eggs as large as big marbles in her 
(fully one inch in diameter), and the other with ovaries having 
eggs as big as grains of barley. 
Specimen No. 1—(P. crispus). 
Irides pale straw yellow ; orbital region greyish white; 6i17 dusky grey ; 
edges of upper mandible near nail pale yellow; nail yellow, pale at tip ; 
lower mandible greyish purple ; pouch greyish yellow ; tarsus greyish 
pink ; toes dusky pink ; claws dusky pale yellow. 
MEASUREMENTS. 
Sex, 2 Date, 4th January, 1880. Weight, 16tbs, 
Length ese, 65°50" *Bill at front a 1D Bar 
Expanse eee 116°75" Bill at gape pos 4425" 
Tail snc 9-00" Tarsus eee 4 50° 
Wing eae eee Mid toe and claw ia ae 
Greatest width of bill ... 1°62” 
* Note.—Length of bill in all cases is measured from point of feathers on culmen, Greatest 
width of bill is that of upper mandible, 
