BIRDS OF TASMANIA. 191 



Young. — Upper surface, save hind-neck, dull sooty-black, 

 without gloss; hind-neck and under surface white; sides of chest 

 slightly blackish. 



Nest. — A platform of broken-down reeds in a colony in a 

 swamp. 



Eggs. — Clutch three to four; roundish oval in shape; texture 

 coarse; surface pitted and slightly glossy; colour dull white. 

 Dimensions in mm. of a clutch:— (1) 62 x 46, (2) 61.5 x 46, (3) 

 63 X 47, (4) 61 X 45. 



Breeding Season. — September to December. 



Geographical Distribution. — Tasmania (accidental), Australia 

 in general, and New Guinea. 



Observations. — I cannot find any exact data relating to this 

 bird's appearance or appearances in Tasmania. 



*GLOSSY IBIS 

 {Plegadis jalcinellus, Linn.) 



Male {breeding plumage). — Forehead and crown glossy green; 

 back black, glossed with green and bronzy-purple; lower back., 

 rump, upper tail coverts, and tail black, glossed with green and 

 bronzy-green ; wing coverts deep chestnut ; primary coverts and 

 quills glossy green; neck and under surface deep maroon chest- 

 nut; bill, legs, and feet dark brownish-olive. Dimensions in mm. 

 —Length, 560; bill, 128; wing, 284; tail, 98; tarsus, 104. 



Female {breeding plumage). — Similar to male, but dimensions 

 slightly less. 



Male and Female {non-breeding plum,age). — Head and neck 

 more or less striped with whitish and black; no rufous on back 

 or shoulders; rest of plumage practically similar to breeding dress. 



Young.- — Head dusky-brown, both it and the throat lightly 

 striped with whitish; rest of plumage similar to adults, but more 

 of a uniform oil-green, with metallic reflections. 



Nest. — Somewhat bulky, composed of sticks and twigs, placed 

 in the branches of a tree in or near water. 



Eggs. — Clutch three to four; oval in shape; texture coarse; 

 surface slightly glossy; colour deep bluish-green. Dimensions in 

 mm. of odd examples :— (1) 50 x 36, (2) 52 x 36.5. 



Breeding Season. — October and November. 



Geographical Distribution. — Tasmania (accidental), Australia 

 in general, Borneo, Java, Celebes, New Guinea, China, Siam. 

 Afghanistan, Turkestan, Persia, Southern Europe, eastern portion 

 of the United States, South Africa, Egypt, and several minor 

 places. 



Observations. — The same remarks apply to this species as to 

 the former one. At the most they are but rare and accidental 

 visitors, in all probability blown out of their course. 



