﻿Potts. — On a Neio Species of Gull. 203 



threading the intricate mazes of the rank aqiiatic or semi-aquatic vegetation 

 amidst which it finds its food. From its short concave "wing, it is evident it 

 must depend less on securing safety by flight than on the rapidity with which 

 it can conceal itself from notice amongst the marshy vegetation of its favourite 

 haunts. If the bill of R. pectoralis may be said somewhat to resemble that of 

 Ocydromus, that of R. 2n.Gtus rather shows an approach to that of R. aquations, 

 Penn., less produced. We have heard on very good authority that a larger 

 species of rail is yet to be found amongst the morasses of "Westland. 



Bill, upper mandible dark horn colour, lower mandible lighter ; crown, 

 occiput, and nape, olive brown marked with black ; from the base of the upper 

 mandible, a narrow line of white passes in almost a straight line above the eye, 

 merging into pale grey as it descends obliquely towards the nape ; a broad stripe 

 of chestnut commences at the base of the bill, passes through the eye, across the 

 cheek, and meets in a broad band at the back of the neck, forming a -richly 

 coloured tippet widest on the back of the neck ; lower part of the cheek and 

 throat pale gi'ey and brownish grey ; chin greyish, almost white ; lower part 

 of throat and breast black, each feather marked transversely with two bars of 

 white indistinctly tipped with pale brown ; breast crossed with a band of rich 

 but light brown, with a chesnut spot in the centre, basal portion of each 

 feather black, apical portion crossed with two narrow black bars, shafts white ; 

 greater wing coverts, olive brown, with occasional white and black spots ; point 

 of shoulders nearly white ; primaries, of which the second, third, and fourth 

 are nearly of the same length and longest, third and fourth chestnut, barred 

 on inner and outer web with black, first and second marked with bars of 

 white, which, on inner web are slightly crescentic ; abdomen black, barred 

 with white ; lower abdomen pale fulvous ; front of thighs fulvous ; back of 

 thighs slaty black ; tail, shafts black, webs olive brown, dai'kest in the centre, 

 middle feather with four spots of white, centre feather of under tail coverts 

 black, with three white bars tipped with fulvous ; vent black, tipped with deep 

 fulvous. 



Bill, from gape to tip of upper mandible, 1 -58 inches ; wing, from flexure, 

 6-17 inches ; tarsus, 1-67 inches ; middle toe and claw, 1-58 inches ; hind toe 

 and claw, -5 inch; tail, 2*75 inches; extreme length from tip of mandible to 

 tail, 15-75 inches. 



Art. XXXII. — Notes on a New Species of Gull, Larus (Bruchigavia) 

 Bulleri, Potts. By T. H. Potts. 



YRead before the PhilosopJiical Institute of Canterbury, 3rd If ay, 1871.] 



Plumage white ; wings silver grey ; primaries, first feather black with white 

 shaft, first and second feathers having an oar-shaped dash of white on the 



