164 
BIRDS OF THE BAHAMA ISLANDS. 
FAM. TANTALIDAL 
SPOONBILLS. 
PLATA LEA AJAJA. Linn. 
Spoonbill. 
Adult Male . — -Bill spoon-shaped, flat and thin; above, rosy red, 
whitening towards the neck ; lesser wing-coverts, 'crimson ; under 
parts, pink, whitening on the belly; head, bare, of a greenish color, 
showing a dark stripe at the base of the skull ; tail, orange-brown ; 
legs, pink ; feet, black, with touches of pink ; iris, red ; young birds 
are grayish white. 
Length 26.50, wing 14, tail 5, tarsus 3.50, bill 5.75. 
This curious and beautiful species is abundant at Inagua, fre- 
quenting the large inland salt lakes which abound on that island. 
They are very shy, and their breeding-places exceedingly difficult to 
get at. They are considered excellent eating by the negroes. I had 
several cooked, and found them quite good, the flesh having a 
peculiar but not unpleasant flavor. I was told by an old negro, 
who claimed to have penetrated some distance into the unexplored 
portions of Inagua, that the Spoonbill was very abundant and tame 
in some of the small ponds in the interior of the island. The inhab- 
