148 
THE FLORIDA CORMORANT. 
Upper mandible black, along the basal margins bright blue ; lower bright 
blue, curiously spotted with white. Iris light green, margins of eyelids light 
blue, spotted with white. Bare space on the head and gular sac rich orange. 
Feet and claws greyish -black. All the silky part of the plumage is greenish- 
black, at a distance appearing black, but at hand in a strong light green. 
The imbricated feathers of the back and wings greyish-brown, tinged with 
purple, their fringe-like margins greenish-black. Primary quills brownish- 
black, secondary like the other feathers of the wing. Tail brownish-black. 
The shafts of all the feathers brownish-black. 
Length to end of tail 29f inches, to end of wings 25i, to end of claws 
282 ; extent of wings 4 65 ; wing from flexure Ilf ; tail 6 ; bill along the 
back 2fV, along the edge of lower mandible 3 T 7 2 ; tarsus 2 ; outer toe 3 T S 2, 
its claw ,- 4 J. Weight 3i lbs. 
The Female is precisely similar to the male. 
The young, after their first moult, have the bill dull yellow, the ridge of 
the upper mandible dusky, the unguis or hook horn-colour ; the naked parts 
about the base of the bill rich yellow, the iris light green, the feet as in the 
adult. The feathers of the head and neck are blended, but not silky ; the 
upper part of the head and the hind neck are brownish-black, tinged with 
green, the throat greyish-white, the fore neck and anterior part of the breast 
variegated with pale brownish-grey and black. The rest of the plumage is 
as in the adult, but the imbricated feathers of the upper parts of a lighter 
colour, but not bronzed. 
