232 PHAETON.— PELECANUS. 



Genus PHAETON. 

 <l>a.er6vns, poetical feminine of 0o^9u»= shining. 



Toes webbed to the tip. Wings very long. First primary longest. Bill 

 pointed, curved on top. Margins of bill finely dentated. Tail of twelve to 

 sixteen feathers. 



Bill red. Back and scapulars transversely tarred black. 

 261. Pha§ton indicus. Thb Shoet-tailbd Tropio Bied. 

 (J 18", and including two long (much prized) central tail-feathers 20 J" ; 

 IJ lbs. 5 20f". Legs white, claws black. Bill from gape 3;J", duU orange- 

 red. Black crescent in front of eye. Narrow black line from gape to nostrils 

 and from nostrils to culmen, dividing feathers from bill. First five primaries 

 black, narrowly tipped white. Back, scapulars, rump, and upper tail-coverts 

 white, regularly and closely barred black. Tail of twelve feathers. Mid-tail 

 not exceeding 12". Indian Ocean. From Eed Sea to Persian Gulf to the Straits 

 of Malacca. (B. 1533.) 



Also P. OBlhereus. 40". The Tropio Bird. Bill coral red. A conspicuous black band 

 behind eye. Tail of fourteen feathers. Mid-tail about 26". Tropical portions of Pacific and 

 Atlantic Oceans. 



Bill mostly yellow. Back uniform, not transversely barred black. 



262. Phaeton flavirostris. The White Tropic Bird. 



(J 29". Legs dusky. Bill from gape 2^", yellow. A crescentic black patch 

 in front of eye. White, with black wing-band. Tail of twelve feathers white, 

 stem black. Mid-tail 18". Intertropical seas except the east coast of N. America. 

 (J. 997. B. 1534.) 



Also P. fulvus. 32". As in P. flamrostris, but general colour is rich salmon. Tail ot 

 twelve feathers. Mid-tail 21"- Christmas Island, Indian Ocean. 



P. americanus. 30". Allied to P. flavirostris, but more black on primaries, and third 

 quill is black, narrowly tipped white. Tail of twelve feathers. Mid-tail, 16|"- From 

 Bermuda to W. Indies. 



263. Phaeton rubricauda. The Bed-tailed Tbofio Bird. 

 <J 24" to 25"; 1 to IJ lb. ? 1 lb. 6 oz. Legs red. Bill red. Silky white, 

 with pink gloss. Black band on side of head. Tail of sixteen feathers. Mid- 

 tail 19", carmine, with black shafts. — Young with upper plumage black arrow- 

 marked. Tropical portions of Pacific and Indian Oceans. (J. 996. B. 1535.) 



Family PELECANID-,S; (Swimming Fishees). Pelicans. 



Huge bill, long and flattened, with pouch. Tail of twenty to twenty-four 

 feathers, rounded. Of large size. Web between toes not emarginate. Frequent 

 inland lakes and rivers. Tropical and temperate regions of Old and New Worlds. 



Genus PELEOANUS. 



ireX^Koi'0!-=a Byzantine form of ireXeKiiv, a bird known to the Greeks, a Woodpeoker ; from 

 7rAeKus=an axe. 



Nostrils concealed in a groove extending throughout bill. Two bony arches 

 support a huge extensive pouch. Wings long and ample. Second primary 

 longest. Of gigantic size. 



