170 BIRDS OF LA PLATA 



LITTLE WATERHEN 



Porphyriops melanops 



Above olivaceous ; head darker; wings brown; wing-coverts tinged 

 with chestnut; outer secondaries more or less distinctly margined 

 with white ; beneath cinereous ; middle of belly and crissum white ; 

 flanks olivaceous, spotted with white ; bill dark olive, with the tip 

 yellowish ; feet hazel ; length 9, wing 5 inches. Female similar. 



In the southern part of the Argentine country the 

 Little Waterhen is a summer visitant, and very 

 abundant in the marshes along the Plata. In language 

 and habits it is like the Ck)ots : it is not often seen on 

 land, and feeds principally as it swims about in a 

 jerky manner among the floating reeds. It appears 

 in October, migrating exclusively, I think, by night ; 

 and after the autumnal departure an individual is 

 rarely seen. By day they are shy and retiring, but 

 scatter abroad in the evening, frequently uttering 

 their hollow mysterious cry, called " the witch laugh" 

 by superstitious people, and resembling a sudden 

 burst of hysterical laughter, the notes beginning 

 loud and long, becoming brief and hurried as they 

 die away. 



YELLOW-BILLED COOT 



Fttlica leacoptera 



Dark slatey ; head and neck black ; crissum white, with a black 

 median patch ; bend of wing and outer margin of external primary, 

 also the tips of some of the secondaries, white ; bill yellow ; head- 

 shield rounded behind ; feet olivaceous ; length 15, wing 7.5 inches. 

 Female similar. 



This is perhaps the most abundant species of Fulica 

 in the Plata region, and certainly congregates in the 



