680 
U. S. P. R. R. EXP. AND SURVEYS—ZOOLOGY—GENERAL REPORT. 
Bill very sliort and stout; not longer than the head. Culmen gently curved from the base ; 
most so towards the tip; lower outline of hill straight to the culmen, then ascending in a gentle 
convexity, a little straigliter than the culmen, but the two mandibles tapering about equally. 
Legs rather long ; the tarsus one and a quarter time the length of middle toe, covered with 
hexagonal scutellae, which in front and above are larger, and cover the anterior face. The 
tibia are hare for about one-third their length. The outer toe is rather longest; the claws all 
short, small, and much curved. The occipital feathers are elongated, and there are two linear 
lanceolate ones about as long as the head and body, hut these are not rolled together. The hack 
of the neck is thinly covered with normal feathers. The interscapular feathers are rather 
elongated and lanceolate ; the scapulars are much developed, linear, lanceolate ; the tips 
rounded, and reaching to the end of the tail; the pennules decomposed for the terminal half. 
The tail is composed of twelve broad, rather stiff feathers. 
The external form of this species is a good deal like that of Nyctiardea gardeni. The bill, 
however, is much thicker and shorter ; the commissure is straight, instead of concave with the 
end of upper mandible attenuated ; the gonys is ascending and convex, instead of horizontal 
and slightly concave ; the tips of both mandibles nearly equally pointed and tapering. The 
tarsi are much longer and the toes shorter, so that the former are much longer than the middle 
toe, instead of shorter ; the claws are much smaller and more curved ; the tibia bare for a 
greater distance ; the reticulation of the lower part of the tarsus is more hexagonal and smaller. 
The scapular feathers are much more elongated. 
The prevailing color ot this species is a grayish plumbeous. The head all round is bluish 
black ; the top of the head from the bill, including the longest occipital feathers, and a broad 
isolated patch from beneath the middle of the eye, yellowish white. The feathers of the inter¬ 
scapular region coverts and scapulars are dusky, edged with grayish plumbeous ; the quills and 
tail plumbeous dusky. The body generally and neck are uniform grayish plumbeous, lighter 
below. The bill is black ; the legs yellow above, the lower portion black. 
The young are dark greenish olivaceous above, the feathers streaked centrally, and spotted 
terminally with brownish yellow. The under parts are whitish, streaked with brown. The 
feathers of the head have the shafts extended into a whitish thread. The whitish of the neck 
is strongly tinged with brownish yellow. 
The young bird is readily distinguished from that of Nyctiardea gardeni by the dark greenish 
olive back, with numerous spots ; plumbeous, not chocolate colored, quills; better defined streaks 
below, and, above all, by the generic differences in the bill and feet. 
List of specimens. 
Catal. 
No. 
Sex. 
Locality. 
When 
collected. 
Whence obtained. 
Orig’l 
No. 
Collected 
by- 
Length. 
Stretch 
of wings. 
Wing. 
Remarks. 
3041 
4268 
5109 
<? 
184fi . 
S. F. Raird. 
Calcasieu Pass, La.. 
1854. 
Mar. 23,1855 
35 
28.00 
38.00 
12.50 
Eyes red; feet dark gray yellow s 
bill dark green and yellow. 
.do.do. 
3836 
4147 
9481 
9482 
Fort Brown, Texas. 
23.00 
40.50 
10.00 
Ilio Grande, Texas. 
Oct. 13,1853 
| 
H. Moll- 
1782 
a. F Rnird , 
1 
