PHOENICOPHAUS JAVANICUS. 
the bill, the form and disposition of the nares, and the presence of a naked mamillary 
space surrounding the eves. In the general form of the bill, our bird is nearly allied 
to several oriental species of Cuculus, particularly to Cuculus clamosus; but the 
latter is not provided with vibrissa?. In possessing these, as well as in the peculiar 
lustre of the bill, our bird agrees with Phcenicophaus melanognathus ; but a more 
accurate and critical examination of the bill of the Phcenicophaus javanicus, would 
probably suggest the propriety, either of establishing a distinct division in the genus 
Phcenicophaus, or of considering our bird as the type of a new genus. The nares 
of Cuculus xanthorhyneus, C. flavus, and C. fugax, possess, in a striking degree, the 
character which is given to them in the generic description ; they are circular, and 
surrounded with a naked, tubular, membranaceous eminence. In Phcenicophaus 
javanicus, on the contrary, they are linear, and partially covered by the vibrissa? at 
the base of the bill ; while in Phcenicophaus melanognathus they are nearly oval, 
situated at the base of the bill, and a longitudinal groove extends, parallel to the 
margin, toward the border. The naked mamillary circle about the eyes is less 
extensive in our bird than in Phcenicophaus melanognathus, but it exists in a sufficient 
degree to distinguish it from the Cuculi above mentioned, in which there is no trace 
of it. The feet of our bird present nothing peculiar, and in the wings it agrees 
strictly with Phcenicophaus. 
The general physiognomy of our bird is that of the Phcenicophai. The body and 
neck are slender, and the tail exceeds them considerably in length. The entire length 
is eighteen inches, nearly eleven of which are occupied by the tail, which is gradated. 
The upper parts generally are greenish-gray ; a metallic lustre is diffused over them, 
shewing itself stronger on the upper parts of the tail, and on the extremity of the 
wings, on which the tint is saturated, inclining to black. The head is of a lighter 
tint, inclining to plumbeous, and without any lustre. The base of the bill is 
surrounded with vibrissa?, straggling, and pointing anteriorly and posteriorly. The 
cheeks, the throat, the neck anteriorly, the vent, and the thighs, have a ferruginous- 
chestnut tint, which in the latter is darker, inclining to rufous. The lower parts of 
the breast and the abdomen have the plumbeous colour of the head, more diluted, 
and slightly variegated with chestnut. The bill is red and shining, the naked space 
about the eyes yellowish, and the feet are black. About half an inch of the extre- 
mity of the tail-feathers is tipped with white, and the irides have also a whitish hue. 
On the Plate our bird is represented two-tlurds of the size of life. 
The Phcenicophaus javanicus is found in the society of various species of 
Centropus, at the confines of large forests, in plains covered with low shrubs, and 
solitary trees. It resembles the Phrenotiix Temmia in its habits and manners. The 
shortness of its wings permits only interrupted flights. It is chiefly observed about 
noon, and is remarkable by the beauty of its form. It is not found in great abundance. 
