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Genus PHCENICOPTEKUS. 
Bill deep at the base, straight and somewhat cylindrical for half its length, with the culmen 
slightly keeled, then suddenly bent down and horizontally compressed ; the culmen flattened ; 
commissure ascending from the gape to the point of depression of the culmen, then angulated 
and running parallel to the latter ; nostrils linear, advanced, placed near the commissure ; 
margins of both mandibles furnished with fine lamellae. Wings pointed, the 1st quill the 
longest. Tail short. Legs very long ; the tarsus scutellate in front. Feet webbed, the exterior 
edge emarginate ; hind toe small. 
PHCENICOPTERUS ROSEUS. 
(THE COMMON FLAMINGO.) 
Phcenico'pterus roseus, Pall. Zoogr. Rosso- As. ii. p. 207 (1811) ; Blyth, Cat. B. Mus. A. S. B. 
p. 299 (1849); Layard, Ann. & Mag. Nat. Hist. 1854, xiv. p. 268; Jerdon, B. of Ind. 
iii. p. 775 (1864) ; Dresser, B. of Eur. pt. 75, 76 (1879) 
Phoenicopterus ruber , Sykes, P. Z. S. 1832, p. 159. 
Phoenicopterus antiquorum , Temm. Man. d’Om. ii. p. 587 (1820); Holdsw. P. Z. S. 1872, 
p. 479 ; Heuglin, Orn. N.Ost-Afr. ii. p. 1263 (1873) ; Hume, Str. Feath. 1879, p. 114 
(List Ind. B.). 
Flammant, Button, PI. Enl. 63. Nihaf, Arabic ; Pag bans, lit. “ Heron Goose,” also Rag 
ham, Hind. ; Krop-gans, Dutch in Ceylon ; Kan-thunti, Bengal. ; Pu-lconga, Telugu ; 
Pu-nari, Tamil ; Inglis KoJcu , lit. “ English Heron,” from a fancied resemblance to 
soldiers ; Urian, Jaffna Tamils. 
Adult male ? (Ceylon, Poole collection). Wing 16-0 inches; bill along culmen 5-8. — Adults (Brit. Mus.). Wing 
16-5 to 17-5 ; tail 6-0 ; bare tibia 9-0 ; tarsus 13-2 ; middle toe with claw 3-7 ; bill along culmen 5-7, depth at 
centre 1‘5. — Male (Sambbur Labe). Length 500 ; wing 17-5 ; tail 6 - 0 ; tarsus 14-9 ; bill along culmen 6-4. Female. 
Length 402 ; wing 15-0 ; tail 5T ; tarsus 1 04 ; bill along curve 5-6 (Adams). — Male (South Africa). Wing 
16-08; tail 0-25; bare tibia 7-66; tarsus 11-5; bill at front 5'08. Female (Tripoli). Wing 14-03 ; tail 5-25 ; 
bare tibia 7-75 ; tarsus 10-5; bill at front 4-75 (Von Heuglin i). The female of this species is smaller than 
the male. 
Iris pale yellow ; bill rosy red, terminal half black ; loral skin whitish pink ; legs and feet pinkish red, claws black. 
Living example (Zoological Gardens). Plumage white, tinged with rosy, particularly on the neck, the region round 
the eye being brighter than elsewhere ; the interscapulars tinged with cerise, the tertials pale scarlet at the tips ; 
the bastard wing and primary-coverts light scarlet, passing into rosy white on the inner webs ; primaries and 
secondaries black ; scapulars lanceolate in shape and with dark shafts ; under wing at the edge scarlet ; axillaries 
bright scarlet ; median under secondary- and under primary-coverts black. 
Young in down. “ Covered with close down, in texture like that on a young Swan ; entire plumage white, the upper 
parts slightly tinged with dusty grey.” (Dresser.) 
Nestling just fledged. Wing 13 - 5 inches ; tarsus 6-5. 
Head, neck, and under surface white, faintly tinged with rosy ; back and wing-coverts reddish sandy, with dark shaft- 
stripes ; the greater wing-coverts terminally brown, with pale margins ; primary- coverts sandy, with sharply 
defined black tips ; quills black. 
