AVIFAUNA OF LAYSAX, ETC. 



215 



57. FULICA ALA I, Peale. 

 ALAI KEOKEO. 



Fulica atra (non Linnaeus !), Bloxam,Voy. ' Blonde/ p. :251 (1826). 



Fulica alai, Peale, U.S. Expl. Exp., Birds, p. 224, pi. lxiii. fig. 2 (1818) ; Hartl. Arch. f. Naturg. xviii. p. 1.37 

 (1852); id. Journ. f.Orn. 1854, p. 176; Cass. U.S. Expl. Exped., Maram. & Ora. p. 306, Atlas, pi. xxxvi. 

 (1858) i id. Proc. Ac. Philad. 1802, p. 322 (Hilo, Hawaii) ; G. R. Gray, Cat. B. Trop. Is. Pac. Oc. p. 54 

 • (1859); Scl. Ibis, 1871, p. 361; id. P. Z. S. 1878, p. 351 ; id. Hop. Voy. ' Challenger/ Birds, p. 99; 

 Pelz. Verh. zool.-bot. Ges.Wien, 1873, p. 159; Streets, Bull. U.S. Nat. Mus. no. 7 (Contr. N.H. Hawaii 

 & Fanning Is.), p. 21 (1877, Oahu) ; Finsch, Ibis, 1880, p. 78; Ridgw. Proc. U.S. Nat. Mus. iv. p. 331 

 (1882); Stejn. op. eit. x. p. 80 (1887), xi. p. 95 (1888, Kauai) ; Wilson & Evans, Aves Hawai. pt. iv. 

 (1893) ; Sharpe, Car. B. Brit. Mus. xxiii. p. 225 (1894). 



Fulica alae, Dole, Proc. Boston Soe. N. H. xii. p. 302 (18(59) ; id. Hawaiian Almau. 1879, p. 54. 



Adult male. Bill and frontal shield ivory-white. Iris cherry-red. Plumage slate-colour, darker 

 above, almost black on the head and neck; abdomen and breast ashy grey. Under 

 tail-coverts white, the central ones blackish slate-colour. Rectrices slaty blaek. 

 Primaries dirty brown, outer webs darker; first primary with a narrow white outer 

 margin. All the secondaries with the exception of the innermost ones broadly tipped 

 with white. Entire margin of the wing white. Under wing-coverts ashy grey, 

 sometimes mixed with whitish. Legs and feet light slaty blue; elaws blackish. 

 Wing 183 to 192 mm. (7*2 to 7'55 inches), bill from gape 32-35 mm. (125 to 1*4 in.), 

 metatarsus 53-63 mm. (005 to 043 in.), middle toe without claw 70-70 mm. 

 (2-77 to 3 in.). 



Adult female. A little smaller, and the frontal shield smaller and narrower. Wing 

 106-174 mm. (0*55 to 685 inches), bill from gape 30-31 mm. (about 1*2 in.), metatarsus 

 50 mm. (198 in.), middle toe without claw 66-67 mm. (2 to 2 63 in.). 



Young. Upperside of a paler slate-colour and with a more brownish tinge; chin, throat, 

 and fore-neck white ; rest of under surface pale slate-grey; the feathers more or less 

 tipped with white, giving the underside a mottled appearance. 



Nestling in down. Bill erimson, with a blackish tip. Iris dark hazel. Skin of crown red, 

 the bare spot representing the future frontal shield purple. Down of chin and face 

 orange-scarlet, of rest of body black ; on throat, neck, and upper surface widely tipped 

 with golden yellow, on the under surface tipped with silvery grey. " Tarsi and toes 

 dark brown with a reddish tinge." 



2 l 2 



