FLORIDA. HYDRAXASSA. 167 



latter \vere very inconspicuous among ilie foliage, while the 

 former stood out like marble statutes against green velvet. The 

 colouring showed great asymmetrical variation, and one young 

 bird with a single blue feather in the right wing was so tame that 

 it kept almost abreast of oirr flotilla. 



" The irregularity of moult resulted in most remarkable patterns, 

 as in several birds, each of which had one white and one bluish 

 wing." 



Genus HYDEANASSA Baird. 



Sydranassa Bahd, Birds of North America, p. 660, ISoS. Tvpe 

 R. tricolor (P. L. S. MuU.). 



This genus is distinguished by the dorsal train, which is com- 

 posed of hair-like plumes and extend beyond the end of the tail, 

 the pendent occipital feathers, and the wide lanceolate plumes on 

 the fore-neck. 



104. Hydranassa tricolor. 

 Tricoloured Heron. 



Arclea tricolor P. L. S. Miiller, Svst. Xat. Suppl. p. Ill, 1776 (Cavenne) ; 



Salvin, Ibis, 18S6, p. 169. ' 

 Ardea leucogaster Cab. in Schomb. Eeis. Guian. iii. p. 753. 1S4S. 

 Hydranassa tricolor Sharpe, Cat. B. Brit. Xus. xxvi. pp. 126. 273, 1898 



(Oui'umee, Savana of British Guiana) ; Brabom-ne &. Chubb, B. S. 



Amer. i. p. 50, no. -166, 1912. 

 Hydranassa tricolor ruJicoJUs Beebe, Om" Search for a Wilderness, 



p. 154, 1910 (Waini). 



Adult male. Upper back, wings, and tail dark slate-colour, dorsal 

 train, which extends three inches beyond the tail, dirty white ; head 

 and neck all round, dark bluish slate-colour ; a nuchal crest 

 composed of purple and white feathers ; the lanceolate feathers on 

 the lower hind-neck and sides of breast lilac purple; chin white ; 

 throat rufous with an irregular line of rufous and white down the 

 middle of the fore-neck ; remainder of the under surface, including 

 the under wing-coverts, white like the lower back and rump; the 

 long under tail-coverts tipped with grey. Total length 457 mm., 

 culmen (exposed portion) 87, wing 22S, tail 7d, tarsus 83, middle 

 toe and claw ioS. 



Adult female. Similar to the adult male but <»mallir and the 

 dorsal train shorter. Winj: 218 mm. 



