CURLED-CRESTED PHALERIS. 103 



Bill shorter than the head, stout, straightish, broad at the base, 

 compressed toward the end. Upper mandible with a prominent basal 

 rim as in the Puffins, its dorsal outline convex and declinate, the sides 

 sloping, a prominent line descending from the base of the ridge to the 

 anterior part of the nostril, which is linear-oblong, and near the mar- 

 gin, besides which there are several faint grooves ; at the base is a 

 somewhat triangular horny plate detached from the rest of the man- 

 dible, of which latter the margin is very convex behind the nostrils, 

 then ascends, forms a slight festoon before them, and finally a deep 

 sinus behind the decurved, narrow, but rather obtuse tip. Lower man- 

 dible with the angle rather long and wide, the dorsal line ascending 

 and a little convex, the sides sloping outwards, a ridge passing obliquely 

 from behind the angle to near the tip, the edge sinuate in correspon- 

 dence with that of the upper, the tip truncate. 



Body full and compact ; neck short and thick ; head rather large, 

 ovate. Feet short, placed far behind ; tibia bare for a quarter of an 

 inch ; tarsus very short, much compressed, anteriorly with small ob- 

 lique scutella, the rest reticulate ; hind toe wanting ; anterior toes scu- 

 tellate, connected by emarginate webs ; the inner toe much shorter than 

 the outer, which is of the same length as the middle, claws rather stout, 

 moderately arched, compressed, rather obtuse ; on the anterior part of 

 the forehead is a tuft of about twenty linear recurved feathers, of which 

 the longest measures 2\ inches. 



Plumage dense, blended, glossy. Wings of moderate length, nar- 

 row, pointed; primaries incurved, tapering, the first longest, the rest 

 rapidly graduated ; secondaries rounded. Tail very short, rounded, of 

 fourteen rounded feathers. 



Bill orange ; feet greyish-blue. The general colour of the upper 

 parts is brownish-black, of the lower deep purplish-grey. There is a 

 short line of elongated linear acuminate white feathers, commencing 

 under the eye, and proceeding along the side of the neck. 



Length to end of tail 10 inches ; bill along the ridge i'^, along the 

 edge of lower mandible 1 ; wing from flexure Q^^ ; tail l^'^^ ; tarsus \^^ ; 

 inner toe \^, its claw || ; middle toe 1^|, its claw iV ; outer toe \^^, its 

 claw I'j. 



