248 
AVES. 
of the preceding group, which is traceable in their whole anatomy ; and are nearly allied to certain 
Lapwings, which we believe they also resemble in the number and character of their eggs.] i 
America produces some species which have a flat naked membrane at the base of the bill, which is reflected over 
part of the forehead. As 
The Common Jacana (P. jacana, Lin.).— Black, with a rufous mantle ; the primary wing-coverts green ; and I 
fleshy wattles under the beak. It is the commonest of those inhabiting the hot climates of America, and has very i 
sharp spurs. ! 
Some of the same kind are found in Asia, as 
The Bronzed Jacana (P. cened). The body black, changing to blue and violet, a bronzed-green mantle, blood- ^ 
red croup and tail, the anterior wing-feathers green, and a white streak behind the eye. Its spurs are small and 
blunt. 
Others have been discovered in the east in which this membrane does not exist, and which are otherwise 
remarkable for some singular differences in the propoi'tions of their quill-feathers. As 
The Long-tailed Jacana (P. siwcwsis).— Brown, with the head, throat, fore-neck, and wing-coverts, white, the 
hind-neck adorned with silky feathers of a golden- yellow colour, and a small pedicillated appendage to the tips of 
some of the quill feathers. 
There is one also in the east which is crested, and has no spurs to the wings, (the P. gallinacea, Tern.). 
The Screamer {Palamedea, Lin.) — 
Resembles the Jacanas, but on a very large scale, by the two stout spurs which it bears on each wing, 
and by its long toes and strong claws, more particularly that on the hind-toe, which is long and! j| 
straight as in the Larks ; but its beak, which is slightly cleft, is neither much compressed nor bulging, 1 1 
and its upper mandible is a little arcuated. The legs are reticulated. ;: || 
Tlie species known, the Horned Screamer (P. cornuta), termed in Brazil Anhima, and Camouchem Cayenne, is ^ !' 
larger than a Goose, and blackish, with a rufous spot on the shoulder, the top of its head bearing a singular orna- 
ment, consisting of a long and slender, moveable, horny stem. Its toes have no palmation. This bird inhabits 
the inundated grounds of South America, and its very loud voice is heard afar off. It is strictly monogamous : is 
said to pursue reptiles ; but although its stomach is only slightly muscular, it scarcely feeds on anything but 1 
aquatic herbage. [The trachea of this bird has an abrupt bony box or enlargement about the middle, somewhat ^ 
analogous to that of the male Velvet Pochard {Oidemia fused)']. 
A distinct genus has been made of 
The Chauna {Opistolophus, Vieillot), — | 
Which has no horn on the vertex, but the occiput is adorned with a circle of erectible feathers. Thei i 
head and upper part of the neck are only covered with down, and it has a black collar. A singular * | 
phenomenon is exhibited by the circumstance of its skin, even that covering its legs, being inflated by 
the interposition of air between it and the muscles, so that it crackles under the finger. 
It is the Parra cJiavaria, Lin. The rest of its plumage is lead-coloured and blackish, with a white spot at the 
bend of the wing, and another at the base of some of the large primaries. There is a tolerably well-marked palma- 
ture between its external toes. It feeds principally on aquatic herbage ; and the Indians of Carthagena rear some 
among their flocks of Geese and Poultry, as they deem it very courageous, and capable of repulsing even a 
Vulture. 
Near to the Screamers we think should be placed, although they have scarcely any naked space j 
above the tarsal joint, 1 
The Megapodes {Megapodius, Lesson), — | | 
A genus recently discovered in New Guinea, with a vaulted beak, a little compressed, the membranous | | 
nostrils occupying about half its length, and very stout and elevated tarsi, which are scutellated, the|ll 
toes (including the hind one) being long, and terminated by claws which are rather flat. They havef 
a short tail, a naked space round the eye, and there is a small tubercle on the carpus, the first and l " 
slight vestige of the spur of the Screamer. The membrane between their external toes is very slight, I : 
while that of the inner is rather larger. They lay disproportionately large eggs for their size. 4 
One species is crested nearly as in the Chauna (Jf. Duperreyi, Lesson) : two others have no crest ; and a fourth^ 
has scarcely any tail. 
In the tribe wherein the wings are unarmed, Linnseus comprises, under the genus Fulica, 
all such as have the bill continued baekward into a sort of shield, that covers the forehead ; and 
those which do not possess this character he arranges in the genus Rallus. 
