(  icon  in 
mid  covered  with  retienlated  scales.  Toes  moderate,  with  the  anterior  ones  united  at  their  bnse, 
especially  the  outer  ones;  the  hind  toe  elevated,  and  partly  resting  on  the  ground. 
Tin1  birds  of  this  genus  perforin  periodical  migrations,  visiting  various  marshy  districts  of  Europe,  Asia,  and  Africa, 
li  is  00  the  borders  of  rivers  and  streams,  or  on  the  marshes,  that  they  usually  seek  their  food,  which  consists  of  fish, 
reptiles,  also  .-mall  quadrupe  ds,  and  young  birds.  They  sometimes  search  the  open  dry  plains  or  on  cultivated  ground, 
for  grasshoppers,  beetle-,  and  other  insects.  The  nest  is  composed  of  sticks  and  twigs,  placed  on  buildings  or  on  a 
(h  eaved  stump  of  a  tree,  whereon  the  female  deposits  three  to  five  eggs. 
1.  C.  alba  Biiss.  — Ardea  ciconia  Linn.  PI.  enl,  866.,  Gould, 
B.  of  Bar.  pi.  283. 
S.  C  nigra  Bechlt.  —  Anlea  nigra  Gmcl.  PI.  enl.  399-;  Ciconia 
fusca  BrU*.  ;  Ard.  chrysope!argus  Licht.,  Gould,  B.  of  Eur.  pi.  281. 
3.  V.  jiiltus  (Mol.)  —  Ardea  maguari  Lath.  ;  Ciconia  americana 
Brit*.  ;  ('.  jaburu  Spix,  Av.  Bras.  t.  89.,  Gal.  des  Ois.  t.  254.; 
Azara,  No.  342.,  Gould,  B.  of  Eur.  pi.  285. 
4.  C.  BpitCOJYUM  (Bodd.)  PI.  cid.  Q06. — Ardea  leucocephala  Gmel.  ; 
Ciconia  umbellata  H'agl. 
5.  C.  tnictfOScelis  G.  R.  Gray. 
6'.  C.  Abdimi  (Licht.)  Hem.  &  Ehrenb.  Syn.  Pbys.  t.  5.,  RQpp. 
Atlas,  t.  8.  —  Type  of  Sphenorhynchus  Hemp.  $;  Ehrenb. 
7.  C.australis  (Shaw),  Temxn.  Linn.  Trans,  v.  p.  34.,  Lath.  Gen. 
Syn.  pi.  138.,  Shaw,  Nat.  Misc.  pl.6'01.,  (iray,  111.  Ind.  Zool.pl.  — 
Ciconia  leucoptcra  WagL  Gould,  B.  of  Austr.  pi. 
8.  C.  asiatica  (Lath.)  Temm.  —  Ciconia  xenorhynchos  Wagl. 
Leptoptilus  Less.  * 
Bill  very  large,  straight,  and  the  base  higher  than  broad,  with  the  culmen  keeled  and  straight  to  the 
tip,  which  is  acute;  the  sides  compressed;  the  gonys  long  and  gradually  ascending;  the  nostrils  small, 
pierced  in  the  substance  of  the  bill,  with  the  opening  linear.  Wings  long  and  ample.  Tail  moderate 
and  broad.  Tarsi  robust,  much  longer  than  the  middle  toe,  covered  with  reticulated  scales.  Toes  long, 
with  the  anterior  ones  united  at  the  base,  especially  the  outer  toe ;  the  hind  toe  long,  and  partly  resting 
on  the  ground.    The  head  and  neck  denuded  of  feathers. 
The  species  of  this  genus  are  inhabitants  of  India,  its  archipelago,  and  Africa ;  some  of  them  perform  migrations  at 
certain  periods.  They  are  not  unfrequently  seen  in  the  neighbourhood  of  towns  and  villages,  where  they  readily  feed 
upon  the  otfal  that  is  thrown  aside  by  the  natives,  and  will  willingly  partake  of  putrid  carcasses.  They  are  also 
sometimes  observed  stalking  about  the  plains  or  cultivated  places  in  search  of  various  kinds  of  reptiles  and  small 
quadrupeds  and  birds. 
1.  L.  argala  Lath.  Gen.  Syn.  pi.  115.,  PI.  col.  300  Ardea 
dubia  Gmcl.  ;  Ciconia  marabou  Tetntn. 
2.  L.  crumeniferus  (Cuv.)  PI.  col.  301.  —  Ciconia  argali  Temm.  ; 
Mycteria  orientalis  Vahl  ? 
3.  L.  javanicus  (Horsf.)  Linn.  Trans,  xiii.  p.  188.  —  Ciconia 
capillata  Temm.  PI.  col.  312.;  C.  calva  Jerd.  ;  C.  nudifrons 
Mc  Clell. ;  C.  immigratoria  Hodgs. 
4.  L.  nudifrons  (Jerd.)  Madr.  Journ.  Lit.  &  Sci.  1840.  p.  200. 
5.  L.  cristatus  (Mc  Clell.). 
Mycteria  Linn.\ 
Bill  long  and  strong,  with  the  base  higher  than  broad ;  the  culmen  straight  towards  the  tip,  which  is 
turned  upwards,  as  well  as  that  of  the  lower  mandible  ;  the  sides  compressed,  and  the  gonys  long  and 
*  M.  Lesson  established  this  genus  in  1831.    Argala  of  Leach  is  synonymous, 
t  Linna.us  established  this  genus  in  1756. 
7  u 
