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TANTALINiE. 
FAMILY XXXVIL TANTALINiE. IBISES. 
Bill very long, arcuate, rather stout at the base, obtuse. 
Nostrils basal, linear or oblong. Head bare in front, rather 
large or of moderate size ; neck long and slender ,* body 
ovate. Legs long and rather stout ; tibia bare to a large 
extent ; tarsus reticulate, sometimes scaly in front ; toes 
four, articulated on the same level, the anterior webbed at 
the base, the first more slender. Claws arched, compressed, 
rather obtuse. Wings long and very broad, with the second 
quill longest. Tail short, of twelve feathers. Tongue tri- 
angular, extremely short, flat, and thin. CEsophagus wide ; 
stomach large, muscular, broadly elliptical, with the epithe- 
lium dense, longitudinally rugous ; intestines generally of 
moderate length and width, coeca very small ; cloaca glo- 
bular. Trachea without inferior laryngeal muscles. 
GENUS I. IBIS, Cuv. IBIS. 
Bill very long, slender, higher than broad, compressed, 
tapering, arched, obtuse ; upper mandible with the dorsal 
line arched in its whole length, the ridge convex, broader 
towards the end, the sides at the base erect, towards the end 
very convex and narrow, separated in their whole length 
from the ridge by a deep narrow groove, the edges in- 
flected and sharp ; lower mandible more slender, its angle 
very narrow, and protracted in the form of a groove to the 
tip. Nostrils basal, dorsal, linear. Head small, compressed, 
oblong, bare before the eyes ; neck long and slender ; body 
rather slender. Feet very long, slender ; tarsi scutellate ; 
anterior toes connected by membranes at the base. Claws 
rather small, slightly arched, pointed. Wings long, ample, 
with the second quill longest. Tail short, nearly even, of 
twelve feathers. CEsophagus wide, like that of a heron ; 
stomach muscular, i,* 
